GENERAL INFORMATION

Vietnam, with a coastline of over 3,260 kilometers (km) and more than 3,000 islands and islets scattered offshore, plus up to 2,860 rivers and estuaries, has been geographically endowed with ideal conditions for the thriving fishery sector which currently exists.

Great potential of fishery sector in Vietnam is embedded in water bodies of 1.700.000 ha in which 811.700 ha freshwater, 635.400 ha brackish waters and 125.700 ha coves and 300.000 - 400.000 ha wetland areas might be employed for aquaculture development.

The Mekong River Delta in the south and the Red River Delta in the north have been used for wild catch fishing as well as extensive fish farming.

Shrimp and pangasius mostly farmed in the Mekong River Delta, in which, shrimp farmes located in coastal provinces such as Tra Vinh, Bac Lieu, Soc Trang, Ca Mau, Kien Giang, Ben Tre..

Pangasius farming is developing in many provinces in Mekong River Delta such as Can Tho, Vinh Long, Tien Giang, An Giang, Dong Thap, Soc Trang, Hau Giang, Tra Vinh....

Production in the fishery sector grew at an average rate of 7.05% from 1991 to 2000, and 10% from 2001 to now. Vietnamese fisheries production increased steadily YoY. Aquaculture output tent to sharply rise while capture ouput tend to slow down. In 2023, aquaculture occupied 59%, fishing output occupied 41%. From 2018-2023, ratio of fishing output has decreased from 46% to 41% of total fishery production in Vietnam. In 2023, total aquaculture area was 5.408 million tons, up 3.5%; total fishing output was 3.861 million tons, equal to 2022.

Aquaculture sector looks to sustainable development

The management capacity of the aquaculture sector needs to be improved for efficient and sustainable development and production, heard a conference in Nha Trang, the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa, on January 11.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien said aquaculture has an important role in the national economy as it contributed 22.5 percent of the country’s total agriculture-forestry-aquaculture export value in 2018 and is the mean of living of millions of people nationwide.

In 2018, bred and caught aquatic products hit 7.75 million tonnes and they have so far been sold in 170 countries and territories. Exports reached over 9 billion USD, accounting for 23 percent of the agricultural sector’s export earnings.

Participants sought to form an infrastructure system linked with the support industry and logistics services for aquaculture to reduce post-harvest losses.

A developed infrastructure for the breeding of young shrimp is needed to improve the quality and output of shrimp, one of the major hard-currency earners of the country, while the ecosystem is still protected, they said.

They talked about the application and transfer of technologies in exploitation and breeding to raise production efficiency and adapt to climate change.

Protecting the coastal resources needs to receive due attention, they said.

VNA


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