Removing the IUU yellow card - Action instead of exhortation: Each person has a job

Although there is no large fleet violating the exploitation of foreign waters, with the characteristics of the "people's fishery" of coastal fishing, the mistakes fishermen make are quite elementary and repetitive but difficult to thoroughly overcome. This series of articles will outline the drastic action of the functional sector of Ha Tinh province in combating IUU fishing in order to soon eliminate smoldering problems.

Unified involvement

In October 2017, Vietnamese seafood suffered a big shock when the European Commission (EC) issued a "yellow card." Immediately after that, although the Government, Ministries, and Central branches closely directed and requested provinces and cities to develop solutions to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, in reality, many localities were confused, not knowing where to start.

Particularly for Ha Tinh province, with the leader’s attention, IUU Steering Committees at all levels were quickly established, and the standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee was assigned as the Head. According to the vertical sector, IUU Steering Committees at district and commune levels were also formed with all relevant departments and functional forces.

“From 2018 to the end of 2022, in meetings or field inspections, the Central Committee appreciated the involvement of the entire political system in the area. Ha Tinh's results in combating IUU fishing are also often on the list of praised provinces," said Mr. Nguyen Van Viet, Director of Ha Tinh Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the IUU standing agency.

Over time, the problems of the Ha Tinh fishery have been gradually overcome. By 2023, to improve the capacity to carry out tasks in the new context and increasingly strict requirements of the EC, Ha Tinh has consolidated the Provincial IUU Steering Committee with 17 members and assigned Standing Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Hong Linh to act as Head of the Committee.

Core forces such as the Border Guard, Police, Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sub-Department of Fisheries, Management Board of fishing ports, Department of Information and Communications, etc. are assigned specific jobs to carry out their tasks with the highest efficiency. In particular, many units and localities have appointed Department Directors and District Chairmen to be members of the Steering Committee, promoting their role of leading and accompanying fishermen to overcome the problems people are facing.

Mr. Nguyen Tien Hung, Chairman of the Ky Anh District People's Committee, said that the more difficult the task is, the more the involvement of the leader is needed. For a district with a large number of fishermen participating in the marine profession like Ky Anh, when the chairman is a member of the Provincial Steering Committee, the process of mobilizing human resources, operating work, or directing specialized departments and communes will have advantages and achieve higher effectiveness and efficiency.

Fishermen's awareness is the key

Officers act, but the people who decide the success or failure of overcoming problems are fishermen. Only when fishermen truly understand their roles, responsibilities, and rights when combating illegal fishing can the fishery develop sustainably.

Previously, Mr. Chuong's fishing vessel, Ky Ha commune, Ky Anh town, freely entered and exited the Cua Khau storm shelter area, and the output of caught seafood was not declared to the functional sector. After the EC's recommendation that all fishing vessels entering and exiting ports and anchorages must be controlled with traceability of seafood to each kilogram, Mr. Chuong's fishing vessel complied absolutely. According to him, before each trip, he will present the declaration book to the Border Guard Station, and when returning, he will declare the output and type of each seafood species caught to the Fishing Port Management Board.

“Even though the Border Guard Station is located far from the area where we exploit and anchor boats, according to the functional sector’s instructions, we now have to comply. However, in the long term, it is necessary to arrange officers in charge of the entrance and exit area of the Cua Khau anchorage area so that we can reduce fuel costs and time to carry out these administrative procedures," said fisherman Chuong.

According to the leaders of the Management Board of Ha Tinh fishing ports, about 3–4 years ago, fishermen's awareness of recording and submitting fishing logs encountered many difficulties. Many fishing vessels kept incomplete logs, even though they were carefully trained. However, after many dissemination efforts, even imposing sanctions to ban fishing vessels that have not fully complied with the prescribed procedures from leaving port, the majority of people are now familiar with the procedure of "declare when going, declare when returning."