In 2006, despite various challenges and difficulties, the seafood sector recorded great achievements with total export turnover exceeding US $3 billion, maintaining a key export staple of the country. Dr Ngo Anh Tuan tells more.

Fishing ships in Cua Van, Nghe An province. (Photo by Hoang The Nhiem).

In 2006, people in the seafood sector faced great difficulties. More than ten storms from the Eastern Sea hit hard the central and southern region of the country, bringing along heavy rains and flooding, causing heavy losses: hundreds of people were reported killed and missing; thousands of ships were sunk, tens of thousands of houses in fishing villages were destroyed and thousands of hectares of aqua-culture were laid waste.

On the market, the price of petrol kept increasing, affecting all activities relating to seafood trading and production.

In the meantime, there were various challenges on the seafood export market in 2006. The two dumping lawsuits against tra and basa catfish and shrimp exports to the US market caused great difficulties to Vietnamese seafood exporters and reduced sharply the quantity and value of seafood exports to the US.

As far as exports to the EU market is concerned, domestic exporters faced technical barriers with warnings and increasing inspection on seafood products exported to this market. The Japanese has also required check for antibiotic residue on all seafood exported to this market.

In this context, workers in the fisheries sector overcame difficulties by bringing into full play their internal strength and exploiting advantages of the country's natural conditions, potential of the tropical sea, while coping satisfactorily with all challenges, taking initiative in integrating in an comprehensive manner with the international market and striving to fulfill all the targeted figures.

As a result, in 2006, Vietnam's total seafood export turnover exceeded US $3 billion, maintaining its position as one of the country's key export staples.

In order to record these achievements, great efforts have been made by the fisheries workers community for the whole year. On the sea, the fishing ships teamed up together so that they could help each other while fishing offshore. The model of on-sea service providing ships for fishing ships has been established and proved to be effective. These service ships provide oil, ice, water, food and even repair services to fishing ships. Thus, fishing ships can stay longer on the sea with lower fuel costs.

Domestic fishermen have also upgraded fishing tools, thus increasing productivity, contributing to improving the living conditions of their families.

With regard to aqua-culture, thanks to application of scientific and technological advances, the breeding of various new strains have shown effectiveness.

The diversification of sea-food strains has been closely linked with the formation of large aqua-culture areas. Concentrated industrial shrimp aqua-culture areas of thousands of hectares have been formed in provinces in central region and the Mekong river delta. Southern provinces of An Giang, Dong Thap, Vinh Long, Can Tho and Hau Giang are home to tra and basa catfish growers.

Concentrated production allows for application of scientific and technological advances, increase of community management and supervision, implementation of safe aqua-culture, ensuring food hygiene and safety and increasing productivity and income value on an area unit and at the same time creating concentrated material areas for industrial processing suitable for exports.

In 2006, total aqua-culture output reached 1.7 million tonnes and income on a hectare reaching from hundreds of millions of dong to billions of dong.

As for seafood processing, there was great progress in technology, designs, and product varieties, thus, products for both domestic consumption and exports have been diversified. Tra and basa catfish alone have been processed into over 60 products.

Special attention was paid to management of food safety and quality.

In 2006, 38 more Vietnamese seafood processing enterprises were recognised to meet the requirements for exports to the EU, bringing the total number of enterprises in the list to 209.

This has manifested that Vietnam's seafood processing industry has been greatly improved to meet international quality, technical, technological and safety standards.

A system of advanced processing factories and a staff of businessmen which have been trained through tough market competition are the foundations for Vietnam's fisheries sector to maintain export development growth.

As the new year is approaching, a look back at some figures of the past is worth doing. In 1981, total export turnover of the whole fisheries sector was merely 11 million USD. At that time, the sector staff only dreamed of an export turnover of US $100 million and the figure of US $1 billion were a complete dream.

Twenty years later, in 2000, Vietnam's seafood export turnover exceeded US $1 billion, and two years later, the figure rose to over US $2 billion and three years later, in 2006, it was more than US $3 billion.

Entering the new year, together with the whole country, workers of the fisheries sector are confident that they will record greater achievements.

(Source: Nhan Dan)