Nui Thanh has the most-developed fishing industry in Quang Nam province. 70% of the 3,000 fishing vessels in Quang Nam are in Nui Thanh. The district’s strongest offshore fishing fleet belongs to 3 trade unions in Tam Quang, Tam Hai and Tam Giang commune.

Tam Quang commune’s Fisheries Union, established more than a decade ago, is a mainstay of the offshore fishermen.

Tam Quang port meets the logistics needs of the fisheries sector, offering a seafood processing zone, a fishing boat repair area, fishing gear, services, and fish markets.

Ngo Van Dinh, Director of the Center for Fishing Vessel Registration and Fishing Port Management of Quang Nam province, said since Tam Quang fishing port officially came into operation last year,  it has provided fishermen with support for fishing offshore, which contributes to protecting national sea and island sovereignty.

“The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has added Tam Quang to the list of ports able to certify the origin of seafood and control illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing,” said Dinh.

Fishing boats anchor at Tam Quang port. (Photo: Ngoc Anh)

A majority of local fishermen use a “mother ship/daughter craft” model. The daughter craft goes out to sea with the mother ship and then repeatedly transports seafood back to shore, replenishes fuel, food, and other essential items, and returns to the mother ship.

The model helps fishermen reduce fuel costs, increase seafood exploitation capacity, and minimize product loss.

Do Huu Hoa, a Tam Quang fisherman and owner of vessel Quang Nam 90442, said a sea voyage takes about 15 days.

“We fish in any fishing grounds that belong to Vietnamese waters. Thanks to a cruise monitoring device, we know where we can fish and where we must stop. We understand that we must catch fish in Vietnamese waters and strictly abide by state regulations,” said Hoa.

Each year the Tam Quang administration coordinates with relevant agencies to teach fishermen about island sovereignty. Emphasis is given to complying with the Fisheries Law and avoiding illegal, unreported, unregulated (IUU) fishing.

Legal information is conveyed to fishermen via loudspeakers or the Zalo messaging app. Ships of 15 meters or more are equipped with a cruise monitoring device or are not allowed to go to sea.

Phan Vinh Tien, Secretary of the Tam Quang commune Party Committee, said that in any circumstance, teams are ready to rescue and protect the lives and property of fishermen.

“The Coast Guard and the Border Guard support the offshore fishermen. We’ve worked closely with Ky Ha border guard station to disseminate the Sea Law and support fishermen with means of communications. We’ve organized many classes on techniques for catching and processing seafood at sea,” Tien noted.

Thanks to soft bank loans, Tam Quang fishermen have been able to build larger capacity vessels. In recent years, the State loan support policy plus their own effort has helped make offshore fishing more profitable. On average local fishermen earn nearly 4,100 USD per year.

Fisherman Tran Ho said, “Since Quang Nam province set up a fund to provide loans, we have felt inspired. The loans have helped us build new boats or upgrade our old boats. I borrowed more than 43,000 USD from the fund to build a 718-CV ship to fish at the Hoang Sa fishing grounds.”

Developing fisheries in a sustainable manner has changed the lives of the fishermen in Tam Quang commune and contributed to the development of Quang Nam province’s marine economy. The fisheries have helped Tam Quang meet new-style rural standards in 2019.