Determining to terminate fishing boat violating IUU by 2022

Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh emphasized the spirit of direction and determination of the Government, ministries, departments, and localities in reducing the number of Vietnamese fishing vessels violating regulations on anti-IUU exploitation and end the situation in 2022 to remove the EC's "yellow card". Do not let the continuous violation lead to the imposing of a "red card".

This morning, July 13, the National Steering Committee on Combating Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (National Steering Committee on IUU) had a virtual meeting with 28 provinces and coastal cities, under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh, Head of the Steering Committee.

This is the very first of its kind, held two weeks following Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh signed and promulgated a Directive on inter-sectoral coordination mechanism between departments, ministries, departments, and People's Committees of 28 coastal provinces and cities in exchanging and handling information aiming to prevent and end the situation of Vietnamese fishing vessels violating regulations on anti-IUU fishing.

EC recognizes Vietnam’s efforts

Deputy Prime Minister Le Van Thanh made it clear that the meeting aimed to evaluate the implementation according to EC’s warning and propose solutions for the coming time to remove the “yellow card” and not be applied with the “Red card".

On October 23, 2017, the European Commission (EC) issued a "yellow card" warning for IUU fishing and gave 9 recommendations asking Vietnam to follow to remove the “yellow card”. EC held two field visits in Vietnam in May 2018 and November 2019 and reduced the recommendation to four that Vietnam needs to implement in the coming time.

As mentioned by Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien, from 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, EC was not able to arrive n Vietnam for field examines, however, the result of implementing four recommendations of EC has been updated regularly by the Ministry and reported to EC. Annually, MARD holds over 10 working groups to 28 provinces and coastal cities for supervision.

By the end of June, the number of over-15-meter-length fishing vessels installed Vessel Monitoring Systems  (VMS) showing signals were 26,915 vessels (accounting for 87.45%). The number of fishing vessels that were marked was 85,620 vessels, reaching 90.53%. Currently, the country has a total of 49 designated ports that are eligible for the certification and certification of seafood origin from fishing for Vietnamese fishing vessels to dock and unload seafood.

The deputy minister said that after nearly four years of the implementation, EC highly appreciates and recognized Vietnam’s commitment, political determination, and efforts in implementing measures to combat IUU fishing; affirming Vietnam’s progression and its rightful direction; recognized and highly appreciated Vietnam's goodwill, cooperative spirit, transparency and honesty in providing information and exchanging information between the two sides on the results of the implementation of combating IUU fishing.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development leader proposed that in 2021, the number of fishing vessels violating reduce by at least 40%, and completely stop the situation of Vietnamese fishing vessels violating foreign waters by 2022.

Enhancing fishermen’s awareness

Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, Lieutenant General Nguyen Trong Binh, said that the Ministry of National Defense strongly directed the forces to sail with fishermen, as a fulcrum for people to stick to the sea. During the peak period, the Ministry mobilized up to 30 ships, using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to expand the monitoring range.

He said that it is necessary to continue to improve the institution and the synchronous participation of law enforcement agencies in handling brokers and who organize for illegal fishing in the foreign sea.

Some localities said that it is necessary to amend Decree 42 soon on administrative sanctions in the fisheries sector. Localities also mentioned the situation that fishermen did not record or incorrectly recorded fishing logs.

Installing VMS equipment on fishing vessels is considered one of the best and most effective solutions. However, there are ship owners and fishermen who do not turn on VMS devices, do not pay subscriptions, so the service is cut off, a representative of Quang Ninh province reflected.

Affirm the determination to remove the “yellow card”, localities emphasized the need of enhancing the communication works that can mobilize and enhance fishermen’s awareness besides strict management control.

As the province with the largest fishing fleet, accounting for 16% of the country's, Kien Giang province proposed the Central Government to support the establishment of local fisheries surveillance to improve inspection capacity at sea.

On behalf of the seafood business community, Nguyen Hoai Nam, Deputy General Secretary of VASEP, said that the association's members have committed to fighting IUU fishing, saying no to illegal seafood. The association proposes to deal with the most important issue: the status of illegal fishing vessels.

Definitely - not to be subjected to the “Red card”

Concluding the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Van Thanh stressed that the “yellow card” given by EC has seriously impacted the Vietnam fishery industry and the living of fishermen; ruining the beautiful picture of the country. As a result, the situation has been paid huge attention from the central levels, and it is not allowed to be penalized by the “red card”.

The Deputy Prime Minister stated that, over the past time, Vietnam has focused on building a legal system on fisheries to meet the requirements of integration, ensuring responsible and sustainable management and development of fisheries. There has been a swift in the implementation, from the awareness of the fishermen to the decrease in the number of violating vessels. Investment and installation of VMS equipment achieved positive results. The management and traceability of products have progressed. Seaport infrastructure is interested in investment.

However, the leader said that the number of violating fishing boats has reduced but it is still several. The work of seafood traceability is still limited. The infrastructure at fishing ports in 28 provinces and coastal cities has not received adequate attention and investment.

It is due to the unsynchronous and unsuitable regulations, therefore, it needs to continue to improve the legal framework.

He emphasized that fishermen’s awareness is vital, emphasizing the role of communications. It is necessary to strengthen the work of information and interpretation of the law, to mobilize fishermen to change their habits, be aware of violations, and strictly comply with regulations on fishing. The political system of 28 coastal provinces and cities must do this job well, which is more effective than sanctions.

Besides, the required to examine and complete the legal framework, ensuring effective IUU fishing prevention and combat.

The Ministry of Public Security focuses on directing forces to grasp the situation, promptly detect, investigate and strictly handle organizations and individuals that broker and connect Vietnamese fishing vessels and fishermen to illegally exploit seafood without permission in foreign waters.

Ministries, sectors, and 28 coastal localities must take drastic action to effectively implement the EC's recommendations, which, pay attention to allocating budget investments for this issue such as fishing ports and VMS equipment.