Coast Guard stands side by side with fishermen in IUU fishing combat

Vietnam Coast Guard presents national flags to fishermen (Photo: VNA)

Phu Yen (VNA) – The Vietnam Coast Guard High Command has carried out many activities accompanying fishermen in coastal localities in socio-economic development, and this has become a bright spot in the mass mobilisation work in the new period.

Commander of the force Major General Le Quang Dao said that from 2017 to April 2023, they implemented the “Coast Guard standing shoulder-to-shoulder with fishermen” programme in 22 coastal localities.

The programme aims to step up disseminations on the Party's guidelines and the State's policies and laws; build safe areas and a strong political system; support localities in socio-economic and cultural development, new-style rural area building, implementation of social welfare activities; assist fishermen in working at sea and contributing to maintaining security and sovereignty over sea and islands; and mobilise human resources, means and ships to participate in the protection of sovereignty over sea and islands.

Since 2022, the force has disseminated the Party's guidelines and policies, and the State's policies and laws on sea, islands, and illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing to nearly 50,000 people and fishermen.

It has mobilised different resources to provide about 18 billion VND (768,200 USD) for social welfare and poverty reduction activities.

Dao affirmed that the Vietnam Coast Guard is one of the core forces in dissemination, advocacy and implementation of anti-IUU fishing regulations. In the first quarter of 2023, it has provided dissemination for 1,435 Vietnamese fishing vessels, exchanged 255 messages related to IUU fishing prevention and control, and verified cases of Vietnamese vessels staying uncontacted.

It has deployed 30 ships to perform patrols and controls.

Thanks to these efforts, the number of Vietnamese vessels violating foreign waters decreased in the first quarter of this year.

In the coming time, the force will continue coordinating closely with the Vietnam People’s Navy in using surveillance aircraft to grasp the situation at sea, monitor and supervise fishing vessels operating in the sea area bordering Vietnam - Thailand - Malaysia - Indonesia, and deploy forces and ship to patrol and control IUU fishing in the Gulf of Tonkin./.

VNA