Northern Hai Phong city and neighboring Quang Ninh and Thai Binh provinces have stepped up measures to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing activities.

Deputy Chairman of the Hai Phong City People’s Committee Nguyen Duc Tho chaired a meeting on February 21 to discuss tackling IUU fishing in the port city.

He called on relevant departments and agencies to continue implementing guidelines from the government and local authorities on combating IUU fishing, with a focus on managing fleets and monitoring vessels.

In Quang Ninh, the provincial People’s Committee has taken various measures to fight IUU fishing, including promoting the registration and granting of licenses to qualified fishing vessels and launching campaigns to inspect and punish violators.

The province has set a target of registering all qualified fishing vessels by March 30 this year.

Meanwhile, authorities in Thai Binh province have issued a plan to combat IUU fishing within its territory.

The province has identified five key tasks, including the monitoring of fishing vessels outside of tracking systems at sea, addressing vessels trespassing into prohibited areas or zones, and recording and monitoring fishing logs for source traceability. The plan also highlights the strict management and control of vessels without painted registration numbers.

Provincial border guards are set to lead inspections of and controls over all fishing vessels entering and leaving local ports and river mouths, to ensure that they meet the required conditions for departure. Vessels failing to meet the required conditions will not be permitted to depart.

A fifth IUU inspection in Vietnam by the European Commission (EC) is scheduled for April.