Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son chairs meeting on sustainable fisheries development

Vietnam is committed to cooperating with international partners to develop sustainable and responsible fisheries, supporting the livelihoods of small-scale fishing communities.

On June 11 (local time), within the framework of the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3), Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son and Ms. Marija Vučković, Minister of Environmental Protection and Green Transition, Republic of Croatia, co-chaired the thematic session 5: Promoting sustainable fisheries management and supporting small-scale fisheries.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is the agency in charge of proposing the commitments of the Vietnamese Government. Representatives of the Department of Seas and Islands, the Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance and the Department of International Cooperation attended the meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister.

Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son and the delegation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment at the discussion session of the United Nations Ocean Conference UNOC3. Photo: ICD.

The panelists included Mr. Qu Dongyu, Director-General of FAO; Mr. Pio Manoa, Assistant Director-General of the Pacific Islands Fisheries Forum; Ms. Editrudith Lukanga, Secretary-General of the Network of Women in Fish Production and Trade; and Mr. Costas Kadis, Co-Chair of the Regional Fisheries Secretariat, United Kingdom.

Leaders of specialized agencies and organizations emphasized the essential role of fisheries in ensuring food and nutrition supplies, conserving marine biodiversity, especially small-scale fisheries, linked to sustainable livelihoods and the participation of fishing communities. In addition, regional cooperation, capacity building, technological innovation and promoting responsible seafood trade with clear origins were points of consensus in the speeches of senior officials.

The common goal of countries is to ensure that fisheries contribute to global food security and sustainable development, through cooperative, flexible and science-based solutions.

In his speech, Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son emphasized that today's session has an important topic that determines the sustainable development of oceans, seas and fisheries, ensuring global food security, especially for small-scale coastal fishing communities - a group vulnerable to climate change, degradation and pollution of the marine and ocean environment.

Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son highlighted the important role of fisheries in ensuring livelihoods, food security and ocean protection. Photo: VOV.

Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son affirmed that Vietnam is committed to developing sustainable fisheries in the direction of protecting small-scale fishing communities, ensuring they have stable incomes, and gradually reducing their dependence on marine resources and fisheries. At the same time, it focuses on improving the living and working conditions of fishermen, especially coastal fishermen; promoting training and transferring environmentally friendly fishing skills, helping them to be able to maintain their fishing profession in the long term.

In particular, sustainable fisheries development requires strengthening the management role of communities, fishing cooperatives and women in resource exploitation and management.

In the spirit of cooperation, Vietnam will work with international partners to create a channel to access green finance, apply modern technology and share experiences in sustainable management of fisheries and oceans, and combat IUU fishing.

To realize these goals, Vietnam proposes initiatives to build an international cooperation framework to coordinate and support small-scale fisheries at regional and global levels; establish a technical and financial support mechanism for developing countries and small-scale fisheries in implementing SDG14; promote a network for sharing fisheries data and resource recovery within the framework of FAO and multilateral initiatives.

Domestically, Vietnam has developed strong policies and legislation, with the 2017 Fisheries Law being an important foundation for sustainable fisheries development, with a focus on maintaining and protecting small-scale fisheries, while encouraging co-management and community participation. The Fisheries Development Strategy to 2030 protects marine ecosystems and restores aquatic resources, and proposes measures to establish marine protected areas and fishing restrictions. Vietnam is therefore firmly pursuing the goal of transforming environmentally harmful fishing activities into a fisheries model that is friendly and in harmony with the marine ecosystem.

Source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/pho-thu-tuong-bui-thanh-son-chu-tri-phien-hop-phat-trien-nghe-ca-ben-vung-d757737.html