The Directorate of Fisheries (DoF) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has signed a cooperation agreement with Viet Nam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) for applying information technology (IT) in fishery resource management.

Under the six-year agreement signed on February 5, VNPT will give advice to DoF to select information and telecommunications technology for the management of fishery breeding and resource exploitation, development of the resource and ensure safety for humans and fishing boats.

The group will also help DoF build a database for farming and breeding activities, and apply IT solutions to prevent the problems of illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

VNPT and DoF will join hands to launch a communication system for fishermen, and connect the system of fish and boat management with the fishery database.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Nguyen Ngoc Oai, acting general director of the DoF, highlighted the significance of IT application to improve the efficiency of fishery management, meet strict requirements of import markets on origins, especially when the European Commission has issued a yellow card warning to Viet Nam.

Viet Nam received the warning after the country failed to demonstrate sufficient progress in the fight against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

Deputy minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Vu Van Tam said that he hoped the cooperation would not only help the sea patrol forces to inspect local boats but also foreign ships to exploit seafood resources illegally in Viet Nam’s seashore.

Deputy minister of Information and Communications Pham Hong Hai asked VNPT to study carefully the characteristics of the fishery sector to develop practical, modern products and applications serving the sector’s management and ensure the efficiency of cooperation in the long term. — VNS