Central provinces are working hard to lift the IUU 'yellow card'.

Carefully monitor ships arriving at and departing from the port.

Tho Quang fishing port and harbor ( Da Nang City) is a popular destination for many fishermen from Central Vietnam. Every day, dozens of fishing vessels dock and depart, bringing in approximately 150 tons of seafood. Therefore, the management and monitoring of catch volume is strictly enforced by the authorities.

According to Mr. Nguyen Lai, Head of the Tho Quang Fishing Port and Dock Management Board, the unit regularly disseminates directives on preventing and combating IUU (Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated) fishing to each fishing vessel and fisherman. At the same time, they strengthen inspections of fishing vessels at sea and when entering and leaving the port, and strictly handle violations.

Tho Quang fishing harbor and dock - Da Nang City. Photo: Ho Giap

In addition, penalties will be imposed for violations related to fishing and port entry/exit logbooks, lack of required documentation, and failure to certify fishing vessel crew registers; especially for fishing vessels that illegally violate foreign waters, and fishing vessels that do not install or operate vessel tracking devices.

To date, 573 out of 598 fishing vessels with a maximum length of 15 meters or more have installed vessel tracking devices; of the 25 vessels that have not yet installed them, 17 have temporarily ceased operations due to labor shortages and expired registration certificates or fishing licenses, and 6 are in the process of registering new vessels,...

In Quang Nam, an IUU (Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated) fishing office has been established, comprising three forces: the Fisheries Sub-Department, the Border Guard, and the Quang Nam Center for Vessel Registration and Port Management. Its purpose is to conduct 24/7 inspections and controls of vessels arriving at and departing from ports, in accordance with regulations, and to strictly handle violations.

Regularly check information on fishing vessels arriving at fishing ports on the national fishing vessel tracking system, the Vnfishbase database, and the list of fishing vessels engaged in IUU fishing; promptly detect and forward files to relevant authorities for handling fishing vessels that violate regulations.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien inspects Quang Nam province in mid-September. (Photo: Cong Sang)

According to Mr. Vo Van Long, Head of the Quang Nam Fisheries Department, the IUU office controls fishing vessels according to prescribed ratios; announces designated fishing ports to verify the origin of seafood from fishing; monitors fishing vessels engaged in illegal fishing; and verifies raw materials and certifies the origin of harvested seafood.

"From 2020 to July 11, 2023, specialized inspections and controls were conducted, resulting in administrative penalties for 439 violations of regulations in IUU fishing activities, with a total fine of over 4.7 billion VND," Mr. Long said.

For Quang Ngai , the Head of the Fisheries Sub-Department   According to Nguyen Van Muoi, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development annually organizes dozens of conferences to disseminate and educate on laws related to the fisheries sector, with over 700 participants; it also promotes the 2017 Fisheries Law and combats IUU (Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated) fishing, etc. It has compiled and printed 6,000 leaflets on fisheries laws to distribute to fishermen; and conducted oral presentations, distributed leaflets and documents to over 3,000 fishermen.

Quang Ngai province is stepping up inspections of fishing vessels entering and leaving ports. (Photo: Cong Sang)

The Provincial Border Guard Command directed border guard stations to coordinate with the People's Committees of communes and wards in the coastal border area, not only to disseminate information but also to encourage ship owners and captains to sign commitments not to illegally exploit marine resources in foreign waters.

To facilitate management, a total of 4,287 fishing vessels from the province, with a total capacity of 1,765,282 horsepower, have had their data updated in the national fisheries database system.

“As of November 2023, the entire province has 2,937 vessels equipped with VMS out of 3,117 fishing vessels with a length of 15m or more that are required to install VMS, reaching 99.16% of the total number of vessels in operation (excluding 155 vessels docked); there are still 25 vessels operating within and outside the province that have not yet installed the equipment,” Mr. Mười informed.

Fishermen in Quang Ngai strictly comply with regulations on fishing and seafood exploitation. (Photo: Cong Sang).

Thanks to thorough monitoring, inspection, and control of fishing vessel activities through VMS, the situation of fishing vessels in the province violating foreign waters to illegally exploit marine resources has been basically controlled and prevented.

From 2020 to the present, Quang Ngai province has not had any cases of fishing vessels violating foreign waters and being apprehended or prosecuted. However, there have been 3 incidents involving 3 fishing vessels being seized by foreign countries (1 incident/1 vessel in 2021, 2 incidents/2 vessels in 2022), but the authorities have verified, investigated, and concluded that none of the cases involved violations of foreign waters.

Surprise inspection

One of the provinces with the largest fishing fleet in the country, Binh Dinh, is also implementing solutions to lift its IUU (Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated) fishing "yellow card." According to Mr. Tran Van Phuc, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Binh Dinh province, after a review, 375 fishing vessels from the province regularly operate in southern provinces and do not return to the locality annually; 72 vessels have been sold outside the province but the owners have not completed the transfer of ownership procedures; and 8 vessels have owners who have moved their residence outside the province.

The locality has signed separate regulations on coordinating the management of fishing vessels with the southern provinces of Ba Ria - Vung Tau and Binh Thuan; and a joint regulation on coordinating the management of fishing vessels with 10 central provinces (from Thanh Hoa to Khanh Hoa). Five inter-agency working groups have been organized to work with the southern provinces to coordinate the management of the province's fishing vessels.

Binh Dinh province is strictly inspecting fishing vessels. Photo: Diem Phuc

In addition, unscheduled inspections were conducted on 142 fishing vessels (62 vessels 15m or longer; 80 vessels 12-under 15m in length) regarding technical safety and fishing conditions for fishing vessels from Binh Dinh operating and anchored in Ba Ria - Vung Tau; a request was made to Ba Ria - Vung Tau not to process departure permits for 18 fishing vessels that did not meet technical safety standards.

Local authorities organize a 24/7 onshore monitoring system to track, receive information, detect, and handle fishing vessels exceeding permitted boundaries at sea; and disable or deactivate vessel tracking devices during operations at sea.

Weekly, the unit will update the list of fishing vessels in Binh Dinh province at high risk of violating regulations on illegal fishing, send notifications and requests to the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Border Guard Command of coastal provinces to coordinate in strengthening the prevention and control of IUU fishing.

Cong Sang - Diem Phuc

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/cac-tinh-mien-trung-rao-riet-go-the-vang-iuu-2220301.html