Tien Giang: Communication activities step up to raise fishermen’s awareness about IUU
Local fishermen are urged to follow proactive monitoring measures such as installing vessel monitoring system (VMS) equipment, which is expected to curb violations relating to foreign waters.
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| The province also established an inspection team specialising in anti-IUU fishing. Illustrative image. |
The Steering Committee for the Prevention and Control of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing (IUU) of the southern province of Tien Giang has been stepping up communication activities to raise awareness of fishermen and relevant sectors on the need to end IUU fishing.
Local fishermen are urged to follow proactive monitoring measures such as installing vessel monitoring system (VMS) equipment, which is expected to curb violations relating to foreign waters.
The provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has coordinated with relevant agencies and local administrations to popularise legal documents on banned activities and administrative punishments relating to IUU fishing among fishing vessel owners and captains, in such forms as holding meetings or broadcasting via public loudspeaker systems.
The province also established an inspection team specialising in anti-IUU fishing, while making use of an inter-sectoral coordination mechanism between departments, ministries, branches, and People's Committees of 28 coastal provinces and cities for information exchange and handling to prevent Vietnamese vessels from violating regulations.
Wards and communes with fishing vessels have been required to investigate cases where fishing vessels cut off VMS signals for more than ten days or fishing vessels are suspected of going beyond permitted fishing boundaries, in order to impose strict punishment on violations.
On the other hand, fishing vessel owners are encouraged to sign voluntary commitments to not fishing in foreign waters and not violating local and international bans on the exploitation of marine fauna and flora.
In addition, the province has implemented support policies for fishermen and prioritised resources for fishing infrastructure.
According to the province’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, currently, 75 vessels in the province have not installed VMS, of which four vessels were sunk but yet to be deregistered, three vessels have moved to other provinces, and 68 vessels have not gone to sea.
In 2022 and the first seven months of 2023, the province did not record any local fishing vessels violating foreign waters.
(Source: VNA)
