The Vietnam Coast Guard force checks the vessel monitoring device on a ship. (Photo: VNA)

The EC inspection team is checking compliance with the recommendations it made on IUU fishing after its third round of inspections. The team will inspect the management of fishing vessels that violate foreign waters, the entry and exit of fishing vessels at ports, operations at sea, the import of raw materials, and seafood traceability.

Achieved results

Vietnam has followed the EC's recommendations to step up enforcement in order to remove the "yellow card", according to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development and Deputy Head of the National Steering Committee on IUU fishing Phung Duc Tien.

“Activities have focused on preventing fishing vessels from violating foreign waters, which is a decisive factor. We must ensure that fish caught in all regions and localities have traceability, including log books that record fishing areas, longitude, and latitude. Fish entering the port and exported to the EU market must have records from catch to market,” Mr. Tien said.

Since 2019 Vietnam has fine-tuned its legal framework to match IUU fishing regulations. The legislation has also been amended and supplemented to implement the EC’s recommendations and match Vietnamese fishing practices. For example, the Government has issued a decree regulating the implementation of the Law on Fisheries and a decree  regulating the handling of administrative violations in fisheries exploitation.

Vietnam has also issued programs, projects, and plans to sustainably and responsibly develop the fisheries industry, promote global integration, and combat IUU fishing to effectively implement the Vietnam Fisheries Development Strategy to 2030, with a vision to 2045.

26 of 28 coastal provinces and cities have completed a review and inventory of local fishing vessels and set quotas for coastal and inshore fishing according to the Law on Fisheries.

The national fisheries database Vnfishbase has been deployed in 31 provinces and cities to facilitate fisheries management. Localities use the database to  update fishing vessel registrations and fishing licenses.

Continuing to follow the EC's recommendations

Determined to remove the EC's "yellow card" warning, Vietnam’s political system from central to local level has enforced the laws against illegal fishing and deployed solutions to resolve existing problems according to EC recommendations.

“The Deputy Prime Minister and Head of the National Steering Committee on IUU fishing has visited facilities to inspect and direct activities. The Standing Steering Committee of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has visited localities that still have violations to provide direct guidance. Inspections show that the entire political system from the central to local leves is involved in preventing violations with a strong determination to remove the yellow card,” said Tran Dinh Luan, Director General of the Directorate of Fisheries.

Vietnam has installed the vessel monitoring system on 98% of fishing vessels 15 meters or longer. The system  connects to relevant agencies where 24-hour shifts have been established to monitor fishing vessels at sea.

Monitoring, inspecting, and controlling fishing vessels at ports is done according to Circular 21 of the Ministry of Agricultire and Rural Development. Verification and traceability of seafood is done according to the Law on Fisheries and the Port State Measures Agreement. Vietnam has also ended violations by Vietnamese fishing vessels in foreign waters in the Pacific Ocean.