The Vietnamese Committee for Fisheries in the Gulf of Tonkin released approximately 90,000 fingerlings in Cat Ba town, the northern port city of Hai Phong, on October 6, with a view to enriching resources in the fishing grounds shared by Vietnam and China.

Deputy Director of the Vietnam Directorate of Fisheries Nguyen Ngoc Oai, who is also the head of the committee, said the endeavour was to call for the people’s joint effort in conserving fishery resources and protecting environment.

The released fingerlings included bass, black tiger shrimp and crab, along with many other species of high economic value, he added.

Vietnam’s fisheries contribute substantially to national economic development and the global market. In addition to fishing inshore, Vietnam is increasingly fishing offshore, boosting the country’s seafood exports, the official said.

Vietnam’s seafood exports rose from 4.7 billion USD in 2008 to more than 6.7 billion USD in 2013, accounting for 6.3 percent of the nation’s export revenue, he noted.

The release of fingerlings was among activities agreed by the Vietnam-China Joint Committee for Fisheries in the Gulf of Tonkin to mark the 10th anniversary of the Tonkin Gulf Demarcation Agreement and the bilateral Agreement on Fishery Cooperation in the gulf.

After a decade of implementation, the agreements have helped maintain security and order in the Gulf of Tonkin, the official said, adding that the ratification of the documents demonstrated Vietnam’s willingness to solve territorial issues via dialogues in line with international law.-VNA