Soc Trang (VNA) – Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien on October 30 hailed the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang for its efforts in combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing.
Speaking at a working session with Soc Trang authorities on IUU fishing prevention, Tien who is deputy head of the national steering committee for combating IUU fishing, urged the locality to closely manage and monitor the fleet, classify fishing vessels and strictly handle violations.
Soc Trang was asked to proactively coordinate with other provinces in the region to effectively and synchronously combat IUU fishing.
Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Lam Van Man said that heads of Party committees, Party organisations, authorities at all levels and relevant departments and agencies have been assigned to directly lead, and take responsibility for activities relating to IUU fishing prevention and control.
The province continues to promote communication about IUU fishing combat, he said, while the entire political system joins hands in increasing public awareness on the fight against IUU fishing and development of sustainable fisheries industry.
According to the People's Committee of Soc Trang province, the province has 774 registered fishing vessels, of which 342 vessels have a length of 15m or more, and 432 others are less than 15m in length. The province has granted fishing licenses to 560 fishing vessels while the remaining 214 vessels have not been licensed due to lack of technical safety certificates, damaged vessels, or long-term inactivity.
Up to now, 342 fishing vessels with a length of 15m or more have installed vessel monitoring system (VMS).
Huynh Ngoc Nha, Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development said that the province has recorded no fishing vessels that illegally exploit seafood in foreign waters.
From the beginning of this year, local authorities conducted six sea patrols and inspected 155 fishing vessels operating at sea. Local authorities handled 20 fishing vessels for violations, including losing VMS connection at sea, not reporting location, and incorrectly recording daily fishing activities./.
