On December 23, in Hoi An City ( Quang Nam ), the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) coordinated with the People's Committee of Quang Nam province to organize a Conference on Protection and Development of Aquatic Resources - for a Green and Sustainable Aquaculture Industry.
No support for fishermen to change careers
According to the Fisheries Control Department, localities have basically paid attention to directing and implementing legal regulations on marine conservation management quite well and achieved remarkable results. At the same time, they have organized research on coral restoration and initial artificial reproduction of rare and endangered species.
However, most of the Management Boards of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and National Parks (NPs) with marine components have not yet submitted and issued ecotourism development projects, such as Cat Ba, Bach Long Vi, Con Co, Cu Lao Cham, Ly Son, Nha Trang Bay, and Phu Quoc.
The People's Committees of almost all provinces have not yet directed the deployment of fisheries control forces in the MPAs to increase patrols, control, and strictly handle violations of the law in the MPAs.
There is no policy to support the fishing community living in and around the MPA to change their occupation from fishing and exploiting near-shore marine resources to other occupations, in order to reduce pressure on the MPA.
Provinces have not prioritized additional human and financial resources for the KBTB Management Board to fully exercise its rights and responsibilities.
The situation of tourism and service businesses violating regulations on management of KBTBs such as encroachment, illegal construction of infrastructure within KBTBs and national parks; illegal organization of tourism services within KBTBs is becoming increasingly complicated, causing great pressure on management work at national parks/KBTBs in Phu Quoc National Park and Nha Trang Bay.
There is a huge difference in the total number of violations detected and handled in MPAs and National Parks. MPAs and National Parks that do a good job of patrolling and controlling have seen an increase in the number of violations (Con Dao, Cu Lao Cham) compared to MPAs/National Parks that are weak in patrolling and controlling such as Ly Son and Bach Long Vi.
Lack of funding and resources
The Fisheries Control Department identified many ongoing difficulties and limitations, such as the slow development and promulgation of policies to support the management and development of the MPA system in Vietnam, which have not met practical requirements.
The establishment of marine reserves nationwide, the planning, establishment and operation of local marine reserves are slower than the set targets. Meanwhile, the organization of the marine reserve management apparatus in the provinces is not stable, and the organizational structure and apparatus of the marine reserve management board are not unified in the localities.
Provinces are limited in the number of staffing quotas in the context of having to manage a large and complex sea area. This leads to the current KBTB Management Boards lacking human resources to be able to properly carry out the assigned tasks.
Regarding the issue of not yet submitting the project for developing ecotourism, Mr. Le Vinh Thuan, Deputy Director of the Management Board of Cu Lao Cham Marine Protected Area (Quang Nam) said that the Management Board determined this to be an important task, aiming to help the MPA orient appropriately for tourism activities in Cu Lao Cham. On the other hand, the promulgated project will help the MPA proactively and effectively manage the tourism sector.
From 2020 to now, the Management Board has included this activity in the annual action plan with an estimated budget of about 500 million VND. Of which, 50% is called for from the opportunity project source and 50% is matched from the entrance fee revenue.
"Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Management Board's revenue is not yet guaranteed. On the other hand, some opportunistic projects are not given priority to this activity, so the Management Board has not yet implemented it. The project will be developed by the Management Board in the 5-year Management Plan for the period 2024 - 2028," said Mr. Thuan.
Mr. Nguyen Khac Pho, Director of Con Dao National Park (Ba Ria - Vung Tau) also said that the establishment of a Marine Protected Area as well as the institutions and regulations for a Marine Protected Area depends a lot on the will of the locality and the Management Boards of the Protected Area.
Con Dao National Park was approved by the Prime Minister in 1993, establishing Con Dao National Park with two components: Forest Reserve and Marine Reserve.
Since 1993, the National Park has developed a Sustainable Forest Management Plan and an Ecotourism and Resort Project for Con Dao National Park, which includes the KBTB.
Ramsar marine site management project, Con Dao National Park eco-tourism and recreation project until 2030 and management regulations, operating regulations and implementation in the field are favorable.
The above projects are based on the Law on Fisheries, Law on Forestry, Law on Environment, Law on Biodiversity to provide operating regulations for KBTB.
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