In recent years, violations of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing have significantly decreased. In 2024, reports showed no cases of illegal fishing in foreign waters. However, risks still remain, especially for vessels that lose connection to monitoring equipment at sea due to bad weather or equipment malfunctions.
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Border troops disseminate laws to fishermen. |
Boosting inspecting and monitoring vessels
Some fishing vessels still operate outside permitted zones, engage in unauthorized fishing practices, or exceed the allowed sea areas for their size classification. Some vessels under 15m in length, which are not required to install tracking devices, still venture into offshore waters.
In addition, trawlers sailing to other provinces’ waters often bypass proper registration, while some ships avoid border control stations and do not follow departure and arrival procedures, or awareness of some fishermen remains limited. To address these issues, the Bac Lieu provincial Border Guard Command is taking actions to prevent and control IUU fishing, contributing to removing the European Commission (E.C.)’s “yellow card” and promoting the sustainable development of the fisheries sector.
Taking measures to prevent and control IUU fishing
The Bac Lieu provincial Border Guard Command has pro-actively developed and implemented IUU fishing prevention and control activities. It has also inspected and controlled fishing vessels as regulated and addressed any cases of violations. Vessels without proper documentation or required equipment are not allowed to operate. Meanwhile, monitoring systems and fishing control software are used to track vessel activity and send alerts to vessel owners.
In the time ahead, the Bac Lieu provincial Border Guard Command will continue raising fishermen’s awareness, requiring vessel owners to sign commitments to comply with IUU fishing regulations.
Besides, it is determined to address any cases of violations, including unauthorized fishing in foreign waters, turning off tracking devices at sea, and tampering with monitoring equipment, while boosting international cooperation with neighboring countries to exchange information, address related issues, and ensure a peaceful, stable, and cooperative maritime environment.
Translated by Minh Anh