Fishing vessels in Bến Tre Province. — VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY — Coastal localities in the southern region have been stepping up measures to fight illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and help persuade the European Commission (EC) to lift the “yellow card” warning that has affected seafood imports from Việt Nam into the EU market.

Following the latest trip in October 2023, an EC delegation is scheduled to visit Việt Nam for another inspection this April. Given this, the national steering committee for IUU fishing combat has set certain requirements for relevant parties so as to have the EC “yellow card” warning lifted after the coming inspection.

Kiên Giang is home to the largest fleet of fishing vessels in the Mekong Delta while its coastal waters attract a large number of vessels from other Vietnamese localities.

The province has licensed more than 7,000 fishing vessels. Among them, over 3,600 vehicles that are 15 metres long and over, have been licensed and equipped with vessel monitoring systems (VMS), reported its Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Lê Quốc Anh said fighting IUU fishing is meant to thoroughly deal with violations in foreign waters. Under the leadership of the provincial Party Committee and People’s Committee, the local steering committee has boosted communications and education, and applied strict punishments to discourage illegal fishing.

Under a directive of the Kiên Giang Province People’s Committee, local authorities are boosting the settlement of violating vessels with a view to controlling unverified, unregistered, and unlicensed boats by April. Assistance will also be given to the fishermen facing livelihood difficulties in the time ahead, he continued.

Authorities have enhanced examination of vessels arriving at and departing from local fishery ports, as well as patrols at sea and settlement of violations, the official added.

Anh elaborated that departments and sectors have worked with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the border guard force, and Naval Squadron 28 to deal with 472 violations involving 547 vessels with fines of over VNĐ13 billion (US$529,800). They have also fined vessels more than VNĐ21 billion for breaking rules on VMS installation.

Other southern provinces like Cà Mau, Bạc Liêu, Bến Tre, and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu have also been working hard to help with the “yellow card” removal.

Phạm Thị Na, deputy director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of the Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Province, said her province has exerted efforts to fight illegal fishing. As a result, the number of violation cases has gradually decreased, and the vessels losing VMS signals for over 10 days fell by 65 per cent in 2023 compared to the previous year.

Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyễn Văn Thơ noted that the administration has ordered the agriculture department give timely notifications so that district-level authorities can work with vessel owners to handle outstanding problems. They have also asked law enforcement forces at sea to hold patrols and deal with violating vessels, and update data about all local fishing vessels on the national fisheries database (VNFishbase).

Na said Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu has installed VMS on 96.4 per cent of local fishing vessels, arranged stations to monitor activities of those vehicles around the clock, and informed other coastal localities nationwide about the vessels of Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu that do not have VMS and not operate in the province’s waters.

Sen. Lt. Col. Nguyễn Hùng Sơn, chief commander of the Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu Border Guard, said its force will push ahead with various measures, including increasing communications among fishermen and coordinating with other units to handle violations.

The EC issued a “yellow card” warning for Việt Nam in this regard in 2017. It can be followed by a "green card" if the problem is resolved or a "red card" if it is not. A “red card” may lead to a complete ban on aquatic exports to the EU. — VNS