Border guards in the central province of Quảng Bình tell fishermen about illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in foreign waters. — VNA/VNS Photo Võ Dung

 HÀ NỘI — Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính on Thursday issued a directive on inter-sectoral coordination between ministries, sectors and the People’s Committees of 28 coastal localities in exchanging and handling information so as to prevent and put an end to illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in foreign waters.

The directive noted that on October 23, 2017, the European Commission (EC) issued a “yellow card” warning against seafood exploited by Việt Nam and exported to the EU, as the country’s fishing vessels and fishermen violated IUU fishing regulations.

To get the yellow card removed, the Prime Minister has directed ministries, sectors and the People’s Committees of 28 coastal localities to take drastic measures to fight IUU fishing, which has been acknowledged by the commission.

However, the commission assessed that some work is still slow, pointing to the complex developments of Vietnamese fishing vessels’ violations in foreign waters.

One of the root causes of the situation is the loose coordination between ministries, sectors and the People’s Committees of those localities in exchanging information, detecting, preventing, investigating and promptly handling violations, the commission highlighted.

Therefore, the Government leader urged tighter coordination which needs to ensure the abidance by the Party’s guidelines and the State’s policies and laws.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development was requested to provide information on the management over offshore fishing vessels and fishermen, and the Ministry of Defence, on the outcomes of patrols at bordering, overlapping and disputed sea areas that have not yet been demarcated between Việt Nam and other countries.

The Government leader also asked the Ministry of Public Security to provide information on the situation and results of investigation and handling of cases showing signs of organising, brokering, or luring Vietnamese people and fishing vessels to conduct illegal fishing in foreign waters, or illegally bringing fishing vessels and fishermen back to the country.

The Foreign Ministry was required to provide information on the negotiations on sea border demarcation between Việt Nam and other countries, as well as the results of the struggles to ensure legitimate interests of Vietnamese fishermen detained by foreign authorities, while the Ministry of Information and Communication should disseminate knowledge and laws to encourage fishermen not to violate foreign waters.

The People's Committees of 28 coastal provinces and cities need to update information on the registration of fishing vessels and the installation of satellite geo-positioning devices. —VNS