Photo for illustration. — VNA/VNS Photo Minh Quyết |
KIÊN GIANG — Kiên Giang Province will invest VNĐ577 billion (US$25 million) to build 38 fishing vessels and 14 logistics ships as well as upgrade seven vessels by mid-March 2018.
Quảng Trọng Thao, deputy director of the provincial department of agriculture and rural development, told the Vietnam News Agency that VNĐ311 billion ($13.6 million) had been disbursed and 40 vessels had been launched, 38 of which are functional.
Kiên Giang Province’s fishery sector collaborates with related agencies and coastal localities to prevent local ships from illegally exploiting marine products in foreign waters and complies with the European Commission’s regulation to prevent and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
In the meantime, local authorities have conducted a research on the value chain of fishing ships, aiming to increase fishing quality, reduce post-harvest loss and improve preservation technology. They have also collaborated with the Việt Nam Institute of Oceanography in Nha Trang City to research and adjust the fishing structure of coastal and inshore areas on fishing grounds of Kiên Giang Province. According to Thao, the unautomated fishing facilities are one of the disadvantages affecting the provincial fishing industry, leading to low-quality fishing products and exhaustion of fishery resources.
Kiên Giang Province, with a fishing ground of 63,000sq.km, has the leading seafood output in the country. In the first three months of 2018, some 90,000 tonnes of seafood had been exploited, increasing 4.6 per cent compared to the corresponding period last year. — VNS