Compliance with a policy, law, standard or code requires understanding of its provisions. However, for someone to understand it, he must be aware of its existence and be provided access to it. A qualitative-quantitative research was conducted to determine the awareness of milkfish farmers about the Philippine Code of Practice for Aquaculture in the municipalities of Leganes and Zarraga, Iloilo Province, the Philippines and their information-seeking behaviors. Results revealed that the majority of the respondents were not aware of the existence of the Code, hence, there is a low level of compliance. When seeking everyday life information, the majority of the milkfish farmers depended on television, personal or person-to-person communication and radio, while when seeking for fish farming information, personal communication was the preferred source. None of the respondents was aware of the existence of their municipal libraries.

Purpose – This paper aims to present the experiences of SEAFDEC/AQD library staff in digitizing institutional publications and developing an institutional repository (IR). Design/methodology/approach – SEAFDEC/AQD IR or SAIR provides a reliable means for its researchers to store, preserve, share their research outputs, enable easy access to and increase the visibility of its scientific publications. The repository uses DSpace customized with some add-ons. Details on the digitization hardware and software, layout, delivery format, and persistent identifier used are provided. Findings – As of March 2012, the repository contains 771 items with 541 downloadable PDFs. SAIR had 88,287 item views, 69,249 PDF downloads and 271,978 searches. SAIR is registered to and indexed by OpenDOAR, ROAR, Google Scholar and WorldCat. It is harvested by AVANO Ifremer, BASE, Sciencegate.ch and OAIster. Initial impact based on indicators in webometrics ranking web of world repositories and research centers was presented. Reluctance to contribute to IR has been observed by the library staff among SEAFDEC/AQD researchers. Research limitations/implications – The IR can be an effective tool to promote institutional publications and those written by researchers in peer-reviewed journals and to generate higher citations through increased visibility. IR submission policy and procedures are being drafted by the library staff. Practical implications – SAIR provides free access to all in-house publications of SEAFDEC/AQD. Full-text digitized copies of fish farmer-friendly materials like books, handbooks, policy guidebooks, extension manuals, institutional reports, and newsletters can be downloaded. Originality/value – SAIR is one of only three open access institutional repositories registered in the Philippines. The paper discusses the lessons learned and issues to be addressed in developing an IR of value to other institutions considering similar projects. Future plans and further development are also presented.