PhuYen (VNA) – Since 2019, fishing vessels in the south-c♎entral provinceof Phu Yen have been avoiding the illegal exploitation of aquatic products in foreignwaters, DeputyGeneral Director of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)’s Directorateof Fisheries (DoF) Nguyen Quang Hung told the VietnamNews Agency in a recent interview.

Hung said Phu Yen and other localities nationwide have made effortsto combat illegal, unreported, and undocumented (IUU) fishing. Through a fact-findingtrip at Dong Tac port in Tuy Hoa city of Phu Yen province showed that it has followed relativelyenough legal regulations on IUU fishing combat. Up to 641 out of 653 fishing vessels have been equippedwith vessel monitoring systems, reaching 98.16%. Phu Yen has 1,922 fishing vessels, including 661 with a maximum length of 6-12m that tap aquatic products in coastal areas. They have 608 otherswith a length of 12-15m operating in offshore areas, and 653 of 15m and above inlength in the open sea. With this number of fishing vessels, the border guardshave to monitor all incoming and outgoing vessels to ensure the management offishing activities. According to the official, Phu Yen initially applied electronicfishing logbooks for fishermen. However, fishermen who work offshore failed toconnect to the Internet so they have to log in offline. When they returnto shore, data could only be updated. Therefore, the DoF has asked units todevelop software to fix this shortcoming. As scheduled from May 24-31, an inspectionteam from the European Commission (EC) will conduct an on-site inspection inVietnam. Phu Yen is one of the localities that is highly likely to be inspecteddue to its high volume of ocean tuna and swordfish exports to the Europeanmarket. To prepare for this fourth inspection, Hungsaid the provincial People's Committee should direct the provincial Departmentof Agriculture and Rural Development and other units to follow the PrimeMinister’s dispatches and directives, especially the decision on issuing an action plan to combat IUU fishing. Fishing ports were advised to review allrecords and legal enforcement activities so that they could offer quickresponses when the team asks questions. It is also necessary to monitor thenumber of products being brought to the ports, the entry and exit of fishingvessels there, the electronic logbooks of fishermen, and the activities ofinspection offices.   He suggested the provincial authorities builda detailed plan to work with the EC's inspection team, in which, each relevantunit must be assigned with specific tasks as required by the MARD./.