On July 18, a delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) led by Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien worked with the Ben Tre Provincial Party Committee to inspect the situation of combating IUU (illegal, unreported, and unregulated) fishing and the progress of the high-tech marine shrimp farming infrastructure investment project in Ba Tri district.
Review of “3 No” fishing vessels
Before the meeting, the delegation inspected activities at fishing ports and the Fisheries Control Teams of Ba Tri and Binh Dai districts.
Nguyen Quang Hung, Director of the Fisheries Control Department, identified high-risk groups of vessels as those trespassing foreign waters, unregistered, or disconnected. “These are three serious violations of Government Decree 42,” he asserted.
The Director of the Fisheries Control Department suggested that Ben Tre province launch an intensive campaign to review unregistered, uninspected, and unlicensed vessels (“3 No” vessels). He also recommended that border forces strictly control the departure and arrival of fishing vessels.
Additionally, Nguyen Quang Hung recommended strengthening the enforcement of administrative penalties. The fishing port management should review records and logs to ensure the highest accuracy and honesty.
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien stated, “During the law-making process, there was consultation with Europe, and they confirmed that this legal framework has transformed our fisheries from a people-oriented sector to a responsible one on the international stage, qualifying us to lift the yellow card.”
The MARD leadership emphasized that Ben Tre needs to review to accurately grasp the number of vessels operating, especially those over 15 meters long (which are required to install VMS – vessel monitoring systems). Additionally, it is necessary to thoroughly investigate cases of uninspected, unregistered vessels and those without VMS installations or those that have lost connection, as these are high-risk groups.
Resolving issues for “3 No” vessels
According to Nguyen Van Bui, Deputy Director of the Ben Tre Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the province currently has 3,026 fishing vessels. Of these, 2,034 vessels are over 15 meters long, with 2,006 equipped with VMS, while the remaining vessels have ceased operations or are missing. Out of 2,373 vessels, 2,084 have been inspected. The number of vessels licensed for fishing is 2,432 out of 3,026.
Notably, there are 1,117 “3 No” vessels and 32 vessels registered but modified without approval documents. The authorities have inspected these vessels and guided them to register as per regulations. As a result, 543 out of 1,149 vessels have been inspected and guided.
Overall, the registration of fishing vessels faces many difficulties due to strict inspection requirements. The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has organized dialogues and campaigns to encourage fishermen to cooperate with the authorities, and most of these difficulties have been resolved. The Standing Committee of the Ben Tre Provincial Party Committee has directed efforts to address the challenges for “3 No” fishing vessels so that fishermen can continue to go out to sea.
To manage these vessels more effectively, border guards and fishing ports must strictly control fishing vessels. It is also recommended that control forces in the area, along with the Coast Guard Region Commands 3 and 4, support and enhance inspection and handling of violations if detected.
Since 2022, the Ben Tre Provincial Party Committee has assigned officials and party members to meet directly to disseminate, guide, and support vessel owners in timely monitoring and controlling activities via VMS. To date, 36 communes have assigned 237 officials and party members to be directly responsible for 356 vessel owners with 506 vessels at high risk of violating IUU regulations.
Tran Ngoc Tam, Chairman of the Ben Tre Provincial People’s Committee, noted that in previous years, many Ben Tre vessels violated regulations, but since early 2024, no Ben Tre vessels have been detained for violations in foreign waters.
VFM
