Removing obstacles in the fight against IUU fishing

The delegation of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang performed inspection of the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing on June 26. Additionally, the delegation assessed the fight against smuggling, commercial fraud, counterfeit goods, crimes, drugs and human trafficking in Ca Mau province.

Ca Mau province is considered as one of the four key fishing grounds in Vietnam, with extensive and diverse seafood reserves. In addition, the province has five government-owned fishing ports, two of which are grade II fishing ports.

The sea fishing industry, including offshore fishing in Ca Mau province, has developed strongly in recent years. As of June 2023, the province has roughly 4,150 fishing vessels, 1,500 of which have a length of at least 15 meters. The average fishing output of Ca Mau is appproximately 230,000 tons per year.

According to Ca Mau province's Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, there were fewer fishing vessels violating international waters during the first half of the year. However, the situation remained problematic.

The province has seven fishing vessels with 50 crew members exploiting seafood in violation of foreign waters in 2022. Three fishing vessels violating foreign waters have been arrested and handled since the beginning of the year. After preliminary verification, two-thirds of the vessels have been sold to residents in Kien Giang province since 2022 without finalizing the transfer procedures.

Accordingly, Mr. Le Van Su, Vice Chairman of Ca Mau Provincial People's Committee, proposed the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to review the civil procedures in the purchase and sale of fishing vessels as well as the conversion of quotas for fishing licenses.

According to Ca Mau Provincial People's Committee, the management and verification of violations is relatively challenging. The sale of fishing vessels without appropriate documentation and registration, particularly when sold beyond the province, is one of Ca Mau's biggest issue. Additionaly, the local fishing infrastructure has not been upgraded to meet actual demands; the fishing vessel monitoring system is outdated; the penalties for fishing vessels without monitoring equipment are insufficiently severe.

At the time of inspection, 1,253 fishing vessels were connected to the monitoring system; 41 vessels are near the borders; 46 vessels lost connection offshore, and no fishing vessels travelled over the border.

Mr. Le Van Su remarked: "Our most difficult problem is the loss of connection and the unregulated sale of fishing vessels. The province's government is focusing on handling violations, but it is also facing difficulties in the legal framework".

Synchronous infrastructure construction

Ca Mau is a pioneering province in the use of two software programs for the management and control of local fishing vessels.

Firstly, the interoperable management software ensures that that every fishing vessels entering or exiting the province will be controlled by the fishing port, IUU Office and Border Guard Station. This software will relay information to all related units, allowing for functional forces to control fishing vessels, compile statistics and make reports.

Secondly, the use of Excel Online data table on the Google Sheets platform allows stakeholders to report and store information regarding expired fishing vessels registration, fishing vessels that have lost connection for over ten days, stranded fishing vessels, etc. This platform will create a database for the local IUU Steering Committee to examine and promptly respond to difficulties.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien, the European Commission issued a "yellow card" warning for Vietnam's seafood in October 2017. After three rounds of inspection, the European Commission made 4 recommendations to the Vietnamese government. Accordingly, the EC highlighted the issue of underage labor in addition to violating fishing vessels in foreign waters.

Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien assessed that Ca Mau is a province with remarkable potential for seafood export, with an annual output of 230,000 tons. The province's seafood exports reached 1.3 billion USD in 2022, with shrimp exports reaching over 1 billion USD. In order to contribute to removing the EC's yellow card, Ca Mau province has carried out its duties effectively. It is necessary to develop synchronous infrastructure from various sources of capital in the immediate future. Moreover, the province needs to shift its focus to social capital. On the other hand, the province must be strict in administrative violations in the field of fishing.

After the inspection, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang praised Ca Mau province's efforts in implementing anti-IUU fishing regulations. The Party Committee and government of Ca Mau have been responsible in putting answers into practice and establishing innovative methods.

The Deputy Prime Minister acknowledged the recommendations made by Ca Mau province and sympathized with the difficulties that fishermen are facing. Additionally, the Deputy Prime Minister suggested the province to carry out its duties transparently and to encourage investment socialization based on mutual benefit.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang added: "The purpose of this trip is examine current difficulties and solve them accordingly. The authorities of Ca Mau province still face numerous difficulties such as: small workforce, limited equipment, and limited authority. The Deputy Prime Minister suggested the local government to attach responsibility to individual agency and unit".

During his trip to Ca Mau, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang and the Government's delegation conducted field trips, socialized with the locale, presented gifts to the Song Doc Border Guard Station, the local seafood production and trading companies, and fishermen.

Ca Mau's coastline spans over 254 kilometers, accounting for one third of the Mekong Delta's coastline and 7.8% of the country's coastline. The province features several estuaries that connect to the sea including Ganh Hao, Bo De, Ong Doc, Ong Trang, Bay Hap, Khanh Hoi and so on.

With the aim of removing the EC's yellow card, Ca Mau province requested the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to invest 750 billion VND in a fishing port on the southern banks of Song Doc.