Quang Ninh (VNA) - Authorities of the northeastern coastal province of Quang Ninh has made public a list of 1,489 unregisteredoperating fishing vessels of at least 6 metres in length, with related instruction and registration activities now underway in a bid to tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
According to the list, Van Don district and Ha Long city house the highest numbers of unregistered boats, at 645 and 428, respectively.
The provincial People’s Committee has tasked the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development with leading and guiding the reception of registration documents, with the deadline for submission slated for December 31.
After January 5, 2025, any fishing vessels having yet to be officially registered as required will be listed as illegal ones. This list will be sent to relevant authorities and local administrations for strictly handling in line with regulations.
Under the 2017 Fisheries Law, those with a length of 6 metres or more must be registered in the national fishing vessel registry and obtain a registration certificate.
As of June 22 this year, Quang Ninh had registered 6,193 fishing vessels, 94% of which secured fishing licences, a 7.3% increase from 2023. All the offshore fishing vessels measuring more than 15 metres were equipped with tracking devices and closely supervised by relevant authorities.
In addition to vessel management, inspections and violation handling have been intensified in the province. So far this year, fines totalling nearly 2 billion VND (80,000 USD) have been imposed on 181 fishing vessels./.
