Accordingly, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan led a delegation to visit the European Commission (EC) in Brussels (Belgium) in an effort to ask the EU to remove the ‘yellow card’ for Vietnamese seafood before EC’s inspection team for illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing – IUU comes to Vietnam for its fourth checking.
Minister Le Minh Hoan stressed that the fight in Vietnam against IUU is one focused mission not only for its seafood to export to the EU but also for the fisheries industry to grow more sustainably, showing the country’s responsibility and prestige in the world.
To adopt synchronous measures for such a growth, Vietnam has introduced a strategy to reduce both fishing density and fleet quantity while gradually switching to aquaculture development.
Highly appreciating this visit, the High Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries and the General Department of Marine and Fisheries Affairs (under EC) shared that the legal frame for the management of the fisheries industry and the combat against IUU in Vietnam completely satisfies international standards.
The problems, therefore, lie in its implementation. Thus, EC is going to cooperate with and support Vietnam to transform itself into a global model for sustainable development of the fisheries industry and its combat against IUU.
By Van Phuc – Translated by Huong Vuong