Fishing boats are moored at Gia Thuận Commune, Đồng Tháp Province, awaiting departure for offshore fishing. — VNA/VNS Photo Hữu Chí

ĐỒNG THÁP — Đồng Tháp Province has intensified efforts to curb illegal fishing by strengthening vessel monitoring, law enforcement and seafood traceability.

The move aims to help secure the removal of the European Commission (EC) “yellow card” warning against Việt Nam’s seafood exports over illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province will continue implementing comprehensive measures in line with the Government’s directions and the EC’s recommendations, according to its Steering Committee for Combating IUU Fishing.

The focus will be on tightening the management of the fishing fleet to ensure that all vessels eligible to operate are registered, inspected, licensed for fishing, and equipped with vessel monitoring system (VMS) devices that remain connected in accordance with regulations.

The province will also tighten control over vessels entering and leaving ports, monitor seafood landings at ports and strengthen the verification and certification of seafood origin.

It will intensify patrols and inspections while strictly handling violations, particularly cases involving disconnected VMS devices, vessels crossing permitted maritime boundaries and illegal fishing activities.

It is also increasing public awareness campaigns to improve fishermen's understanding of and compliance with the law. High-risk fishing vessels are being closely monitored.

Officers from the Tân Thành Border Guard Station, in coordination with Gò Công Đông Commune Police, Đồng Tháp Province, raise awareness among fishing boat owners about preventing illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. — VNA/VNS Photo Hữu Chí

According to the steering committee, all active fishing vessels have been registered, inspected, licensed, marked for identification and managed in accordance with regulations.

The province has also placed fishing vessels that are not eligible to operate under strict management.

Every week, the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Environment updates the list of ineligible vessels, high-risk vessels and those with long-term VMS service interruptions so local authorities can monitor them.

Their mooring locations have been identified, records are maintained, regular inspections are carried out, and they are not allowed to fish.

To monitor fishing activities, relevant agencies maintain a 24/7 duty system to track signals from VMS devices. This enables them to promptly warn vessels that lose connection or show signs of crossing maritime boundaries.

The Department of Agriculture and Environment, the Border Guard and local authorities also work closely together to monitor vessels entering and leaving ports.

The province has two fishing ports – Mỹ Tho Fishing Port and Vàm Láng Fishing Port.

The fishing ports have received 3,408 vessel arrivals, with more than 20,243 tonnes of seafood landed, since the beginning of the year.

All landed seafood has been fully recorded in the electronic system to support traceability.

The province has continued to strictly implement procedures for verifying, certifying and tracing seafood origin.

It has not detected any seafood shipments exported to the European market that have violated IUU fishing regulations or required origin verification so far this year.

Law enforcement has also been strengthened. Authorities fined those responsible for 53 IUU-related violations, with total penalties of nearly VNĐ4 billion (US$152,000) in the first six months of the year.

During the period, no fishing vessels from the province have been found operating illegally in foreign waters. — VNS