Hanoi (VNA) - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired the 20th session of the National Steering Committee on Combating Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing in Hanoi on November 4.
The meeting was connected online to 21 coastal provinces and cities.
In his opening remarks, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasised the firm goal and determination to fight against IUU fishing, as this is a matter of national honour and credibility of the Party, the State, and the people on the international stage - something that cannot be ignored or delayed.
The Prime Minister praised the efforts of ministries, sectors, and localities and urged them to continue carrying out their tasks.
He reviewed some positive results reported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. Specifically, ministries, sectors, and localities completed 23 out of 66 tasks and are implementing 43 tasks on schedule. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has submitted to the Government a draft amendment to several decrees, including revised administrative penalties in the fisheries sector.
Management of fishing vessels has seen significant progress. In the past week, there were no cases of Vietnamese vessels violating foreign waters. Law enforcement on IUU violations continues to improve.
The PM required that all violations must be addressed by November 20. He also instructed An Giang province to cooperate with the Ministry of Public Security to prosecute a case of a fishing vessel detained earlier this year for carrying VMS tracking devices.
“Any vessel failing to meet requirements must not be allowed to operate, and this must be completed within the week,” he demanded, noting that 16 localities have not yet completed issuing permits for eligible fishing vessels and they must review and only grant permits to qualified vessels. Delays in handling violations in foreign waters must be resolved immediately.
He said ministries, sectors, and localities must strictly implement resolutions, conclusions, directives, and decisions of the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat, the Government, and the Prime Minister regarding this task. Media agencies should fully disseminate anti-IUU efforts.
According to him, vessels that do not meet requirements must be handled according to regulations and those without VMS devices are not allowed to enter or leave ports. Data on fishing vessels must be integrated among the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Public Security, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment.
Agencies must strengthen infrastructure, especially signal coverage, so vessels at sea are never disconnected, he added.
He asked authorities to prevent vessels from transferring VMS devices to other vessels for illegal fishing. Violations must be prosecuted decisively, he stressed.
Provinces must develop alternative livelihoods for fishermen, he stated, adding that the Government will provide rice quarterly for three months at a time, and local authorities must ensure food supply and plan career transitions, combining persuasion with administrative and criminal penalties equally under the law.
The Government leader also requested the Ministry of National Defence to strengthen offshore maritime patrols, especially along border areas, and guide fishermen to fish in legal zones.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment must lead in developing technical scenarios and working plans with the EC delegation, completing them before November 10.
Provinces must prepare explanations and respond to EC requirements, maintain regular communication, and provide full information. They must coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Construction to prevent IUU-sourced seafood from entering the Vietnamese market and implement memorandums of understanding with partner countries on fishing cooperation. High-intensity inspections against IUU fishing, especially in southern hotspots, must be conducted. Efforts against “three-no” vessels (no registration, no inspection, no fishing licence) must be strengthened.
The Ministry of Public Security is required to implement the vessel and fisherman management application on VNeID by November 10, continue guiding localities to handle administrative and criminal IUU violations, accelerate investigations, and consolidate evidence for prosecution.
Local leaders must enforce compliance for vessels entering and exiting ports, ensuring that unqualified, unregistered, or VMS-free vessels are now allowed to go to sea, he noted.
Weekly updates of IUU violator lists are required, along with public awareness campaigns and proper vessel registration and marking, to be completed by November 15, he added.
As of October 31, 2025, Vietnam had 79,941 fishing vessels, 79,800 (99.8%) of which were registered and updated in the national fisheries database (VNFishbase). 141 vessels (0.2%) remained unregistered due to some reasons./.
