Quảng Bình tightens monitoring of port throughput in anti-IUU efforts

Fishing vessels in Quảng Bình Province. VNA/VNS Photo

QUẢNG BÌNH– Communes in the central coastal province of Quảng Bình have been requested to organise forces, allocate personnel, and provide equipment to monitor the handling of seafood at registered points, as part of the local efforts to help lift the European Commission (EC)’s “yellow card” warning on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Accordingly, it is necessary for them to organise strict supervision of seafood purchasing facilities in the area, ensuring that 100 per cent of the fishing vessels unload their catches at designated Type-II and Type-III fishing ports and registered unloading points.

There should also be a strict prohibition on fishing vessels unloading at unregistered docks or makeshift wharves. Serious actions are set to be taken against those who assist or consume seafood from vessels violating anti-IUU fishing regulations.

Efforts must be made to collect logs and reports on seafood exploitation, as well as regularly update this data into the national fisheries database software, the VNfishbase.

In addition, the Border Guard Command has been tasked with coordinating with local coastal wards and communes and the provincial fisheries sub-department to prevent fishing vessels from unloading at unregistered docks and makeshift wharves outside fishing ports and registered points in the maritime border area. Together with fisheries inspection forces, the command will conduct sea patrols to inspect, detect, and strictly handle violations related to the exploitation, purchasing, and transshipment of seafood at sea without declaration.

In Quang Binh, localities, fishing ports, and relevant units have monitored seafood exploitation volumes as required, and all local unloading points have been supervised. However, the monitoring of these volumes has yet to be thorough. VNS