Deputy Prime Minister Trần Hồng Hà at the National Steering Committee on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing's 24th meeting in Hà Nội on Tuesday. VNA/VNS Photo Diệp Trương

HÀ NỘI — Ministries, agencies and local authorities have been told to intensify efforts to definitively address shortcomings in tackling illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing across the country.

Deputy Prime Minister Trần Hồng Hà, head of the National Steering Committee on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, gave the order when he chaired the committee’s 24th meeting in Hà Nội on Tuesday.

The session was connected online to 21 coastal provinces and cities.

Hà stressed that all violations must be dealt with strictly, with “absolutely no actions that could undermine national efforts to have the European Commission’s yellow card lifted."

He also tasked relevant ministries with compiling data and photographic evidence of IUU-related violations and penalties, reviewing legal and policy issues raised by the European Commission and urgently issuing policies on livelihood transition to support fishermen in shifting to more sustainable practices.

“All assigned tasks must be completed before December 15,” he said.

Hà noted that the month designated for combating IUU fishing nationwide had ended, but after more than eight years, the goal of removing the EC's IUU yellow card had not been achieved, requiring more drastic actions.

Based on the fact that it is difficult to control activities on the vast ocean, Hà proposed changing the way fishing vessels are monitored, focusing on onshore management and applying digital technology and telecommunications.

He asked ministries, agencies and localities to complete the national fisheries database, stating that this must be done to comprehensively monitor fishing vessels and trace the origin of aquatic products.

Hà said that when the database is completed, Việt Nam could work directly with the EC to provide full information on violating vessels, vessels on shore, the origin of aquatic products, the licensing process and the progress of handling violations.

Ministries were also required to establish inspection teams to work with localities, fishing ports and vessel owners to promptly detect bottlenecks and root causes and to propose concrete measures to eliminate IUU violations.

Hà emphasised the need to clarify the number of vessels found in violation in foreign waters and to compare both administrative and criminal domestic violations with figures recorded by foreign authorities.

He urged agencies to compile dossiers, invoices, administrative violation records and criminal case files, as well as photographic evidence of vessel seizures, to demonstrate the rigour of Vietnamese law enforcement.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) must complete its review and submit proposals for a Government resolution on fisheries management by December 15, ensuring that Việt Nam’s mechanisms and policies are aligned with regulations in the US, Europe and other markets.

The ministry must also finalise a scheme on sustainable offshore fisheries for Government approval.

Measurable results

At the meeting, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Phùng Đức Tiến reported that the agricultural sector had been vigorously implementing measures to combat IUU fishing, achieving clear and measurable results.

As of November 29, ministries, agencies and localities had completed all 101 tasks assigned by the Prime Minister, with 100 per cent of violations addressed and more than 4,037 cases resulting in fines totalling around VNĐ162 billion (US$6.1 million).

Law enforcement bodies had also launched criminal proceedings in 91 IUU-related cases involving 138 defendants.

Of the 71 Vietnamese fishing vessels detained overseas, authorities had handled 53 cases, or nearly 74 per cent.

The remaining cases were being further verified, including instances involving false registration numbers or vessel owners no longer residing in their localities, which complicated the handling process.

A total of 79,243 fishing vessels nationwide had been registered and updated on the National Fisheries Database (VNFishbase).

Boats that did not meet the conditions for operation had been brought under control and assigned to local communes and wards for supervision at their mooring locations.

During the week, police brought two cases involving three defendants to trial on charges of “organising illegal exit and entry” and “obstructing or disrupting the operations of computer networks, telecommunications networks or electronic devices”.

As for recent warnings issued by the EU over several consignments of swordfish exported from Khánh Hòa Province, Tiến said the ministry had ordered a comprehensive review of all documentation to clarify suspected fraud.

The MAE was also coordinating with the Ministry of Finance to compare input and output data along the supply chain to ensure that any violations would be handled in line with regulations.

He added that the ministry was finalising all necessary records and providing data required by the European Commission inspection team.

It was also working with relevant agencies to amend the Fisheries Law and its accompanying decrees and circulars to ensure consistency and alignment ahead of their promulgation.

Fully updated

As VNFishbase is rolled out, all fishing vessels are now being fully updated on the system, including data on vessel owners, crew members and their port entry and exit records, with information pulled directly from the National Population Database, according to a representative of Viettel Military Industry and Telecoms Group (Viettel).

The system also integrates data on administrative penalties, enabling unified management of violations both at sea and on shore.

Procedures covering shipbuilding, registration, inspection, modification, transfer and technical supervision are continuously updated by the ministry to ensure that the database remains “accurate, complete, clean and live”.

The integration of the Vessel Monitoring System (VMS) with its supporting modules will allow for more effective, transparent and streamlined management of fishing vessels, monitoring of fishing activities and enforcement against violations.

Viettel representatives proposed that the MAE develop a comprehensive digital transformation plan for the fisheries and aquaculture sectors to ensure robust traceability management.

Also at the meeting, the Việt Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said it was working closely with the ministry and relevant experts to review and finalise reports concerning 12 fishing methods not currently recognised by the US as equivalent to their standards before resubmission to US authorities.

VASEP also proposed carrying out, in parallel, the issuance of Certificates of Origin for Import for 14 fishing methods deemed equivalent by the US, ensuring the supply of legally caught raw materials for processing and export while meeting US legal requirements.

Reports from localities

As of November 28, the coastal south-central province of Khánh Hòa had 5,127 fishing vessels, all registered and licensed.

Expired licences and inactive vessels are being closely monitored by local authorities.

The province has directed its Agriculture and Environment Department to develop an occupational transition plan linked to IUU prevention and sustainable fisheries.

Over the past week, Lâm Đồng Province issued licences for 7,467 fully eligible vessels and updated VNeID data for 8,115 vessels, reaching 98.8 per cent of total vessels.

Authorities recorded 64,642 port entries and exits, inspected more than 58,000 vessel movements and traced over 9.3 tonnes of yellowfin and bigeye tuna.

From January 1, 2024 to November 28, 2025, the province detected and handled 789 cases of VMS disconnection or boundary violations.

Last week alone, five administrative cases saw violators fined nearly VNĐ100 million ($3,800) for failures in VMS operation, unqualified chief engineers and unregistered crew.

In the northeastern coastal province of Quảng Ninh, by Tuesday, the province had 4,093 vessels of six metres or more registered on VNfishbase and fully licensed.

Some 557 violations have been penalised with fines exceeding VNĐ7.59 billion ($288,000).

Electronic monitoring via eCDT now covers 1,274 vessels and 3,941 tonnes of catch.

The province has allocated 45,000ha of water surface for aquaculture development and has transitioned 766 vessels (about 2,240 workers) from fishing to aquaculture and other livelihoods.

Three fishing port investment projects in Hà Tu Ward, Đường Hoa Ward and Vân Đồn Special Zone will be included in the 2026-2030 public investment plan.

In the northern coastal province of Thanh Hóa, as of Tuesday, the province had 6,231 vessels.

All eligible vessels are registered on VNfishbase and the provincial fisheries database.

Between November 24 and December 2, the province reported no instances of VMS disconnection or boundary violations.— VNS