Fishermen in Phu Quy island and Phan Thiet city in the central province of Binh Thuan will build 59 new fishing vessels with preferential loans under the Government’s Decree 67, a provincial official said on December 9.

Decree 67/2014/ND-CP provides basic policies to boost fisheries development, including assisting fishermen in building high-capacity, iron-covered ships designed for offshore fishing, a practice that could earn fishermen higher incomes.

According to Director of Binh Thuan provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Mai Kieu, among the ships, 44 vessels are built for offshore fishing, seven for logistics services while eight ships will be converted and upgraded from existing wood boats. Total costs for the 59 ships are estimated at 435 billion VND (20.7 million USD),

The Department has announced a list of 11 local shipyards qualified to build new iron-covered ships and upgrade wooden vessels.

Phu Quy district has the largest number of fishing vessels to be built and upgraded with 51 ships.

Binh Thuan, home to one of the nation’s three biggest fishing grounds, has a fleet of 8,000 fishing vessels. However, only 650 of them are capable of operating offshore or provide logistics services.-VNA