Inspectors from the European Commission (EC) will come to Vietnam for the fourth time in October to consider lifting a 'yellow card' imposed on Vietnamese seafood in 2017 over illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said in a dispatch on Thursday.

The ‘yellow card’ warning means that all of Vietnam’s seafood batches shipped to the European Union are subject to scrutiny, or local exporters have to pay higher costs.

The ministry ordered drastic action to strictly follow EC recommendations on combating IUU fishing and asked relevant agencies to prepare to work with the EC inspection team, according to the urgent dispatch.

The ministry also asked leaders of provinces and cities to direct relevant units to comply with the prime minister’s directives and guidelines associated with IUU fishing in order to promptly see the yellow card lifted.

These provinces and cities should enhance efforts to prevent fishing boats and fishermen from illegally fishing in foreign waters, as well as impose harsh sanctions on fishing violations.

It is vital to review the number of operational fishing boats and check the status of their registrations, licenses, expirations, and fishing vessel monitoring system installations.

Fishing boats that fail to meet these requirements must be stopped, according to the ministry.

Authorities in coastal provinces and cities were told to tighten control over the exit and entry of fishing vessels, as well as seafood origin traceability.

Furthermore, the ministry assigned the Vietnam Fisheries Surveillance Force to team up with other relevant agencies under the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to send working delegations to nations which encounter Vietnamese fishing boats and fishermen in their waters in order to handle violations.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development also told Khanh Hoa and Ba Ria – Vung Tau Provinces and other localities to join hands with the Directorate of Fisheries to investigate alleged IUU fishing by Hai Vuong Company, Thinh Hung Company, and T & H Nha Trang Company.

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