Bac Lieu resolved to combat IUU fishing, sustainably develop fisheries

Bac Lieu (VNA) – The Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu is determined to join the entire Vietnam in combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and sustainably developing the fisheries sector for the sake of people and the country, Chairman of its People’s Committee Pham Van Thieu has said.

With an annual catch of about 120,000 tonnes of seafood, Bac Lieu identifies fisheries as a key sector. Given this, it has been ramping up the fight against IUU fishing and obtained many encouraging results.

Notably, it hasn’t recorded any fishing vessels infringing foreign waters since 2022.

To achieve such results, the province has engaged the entire political system in taking measures against IUU fishing to help remove the European Commission (EC)’s “yellow card” warning.

The provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has coordinated with other departments, sectors, and district-level administrations to increase awareness-raising communications, strictly manage vessels working offshore, and address shortcomings in the IUU fishing combat.

Nguyen Hoang Xuan, Director of the fisheries sub-department, said Bac Lieu has been working to effectively enforce legal regulations on fisheries and deal with weaknesses as recommended by the EC. The office has also worked with relevant sectors to monitor and examine vessels while preventing and handling violations, especially infringements of foreign waters.

In particular, all the vehicles at least 15 metres long have been equipped with vessel monitoring systems as regulated. Authorities have also assigned personnel of forces, including the fisheries sub-department, the fisheries inspection and control office, and border guard posts, to keep watching around the clock to provide information for vessels, ask vessel owners to adhere to legal rules, and maintain contact and coordination among forces.

To push ahead with implementing the EC’s recommendations in the time ahead,  Chairman Thieu said the provincial People’s Committee has ordered departments, sectors, and localities to continue seriously implementing anti-IUU fishing directions issued by the Permanent member of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat, the Prime Minister, the head of the national steering committee for IUU fishing combat, and the provincial Party Committee and People’s Committee.

Aside from stronger communications, Bac Lieu will also conduct more patrols and examinations and stringently deal with violations, he added.

Fighting IUU fishing and sustainably developing the fisheries sector will help not only raise Vietnam’s stature or implement international conventions on marine environment protection, but also safeguard the Fatherland’s maritime sovereignty, the official stressed./.