Colonel Vo Duy Tuan, Deputy Director of the Dak Lak provincial police, said relevant forces have intensified coordination to monitor fishing activities.

“We have directed police in coastal communes and wards to work closely with the Border Guard and other forces to inspect, monitor and handle illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU)  fishing violations," said Tuan. "At the same time, we continue managing offshore fishing vessels in line with regulations so that the IUU ‘yellow card’ can be removed in the near future,” said Tuan. 

Dak Lak currently has more than 2,500 fishing vessels registered in the national fisheries database.

The province has helped fishermen convert vessels and decommissioned boats that are no longer suitable for fishing activities. All local fishing vessels have been equipped with vessel monitoring systems (VMS) as required, and all vessels entering and leaving ports are now monitored and controlled.

Local fishermen have expressed support for the government’s stricter enforcement of regulations aimed at stopping IUU fishing. 

“We support strict penalties for anyone who fails to comply with the regulations,” one fisherman told VOV. 

Another noted, “Strict enforcement is the responsibility of the authorities, but every citizen also has a role to play. The personal interests of a few individuals should not be allowed to affect the country as a whole.”

From March 9 to 19, a delegation from the European Commission is scheduled to inspect Vietnam’s implementation of measures to combat IUU fishing.