AQUACULTURE DEVELOPMENT
With an aquaculture area of more than 138,580ha, Bac Lieu has focused on restructuring the industry in the direction of promoting the application of science and technology to production. In particular, the development and replication of advanced shrimp farming models and high-tech shrimp farming models have contributed to improving the value and gradually reducing post-harvest losses. For example, in 2018, the value of 1ha of aquaculture products reached 195.7 million VND (increasing 51.42% compared to 2015). The rate of loss in and after harvest is currently at 16% (decreased about 1% compared to 2015). Besides, the province also built a concentrated aquaculture area with a scale of 135,100ha (including super intensive, intensive and semi-intensive shrimp farming with scale of 18,900ha; 33,700ha of shrimp - rice, 4,700ha of shrimp - forest, improved extensive shrimp farming with scale of 74,900ha and 2,900ha of other aquaculture).
Key cultured products include: black tiger shrimp, white leg shrimp, mud crab, and mollusk. Besides, Bac Lieu province has diversified farming objects including: giant freshwater prawn, Pseudapocryptes elongatus, eel, marble goby, clam and oyster. At the same time, from 2016 to 2018, there were 3 enterprises, which engaged in aquaculture, processing and exporting aquaculture products such as: Thien Phu Export processing seafood One Member Co., Ltd, Au Vung Export processing seafood Joint Stock Company, and Southern Shrimp Joint Stock Company, signed cooperating with farmers to implement improved tiger shrimp farming under ASC, Global GAP, and Organic standard. Thereby, it covers an area of 3,043ha and 1,430 tons of farmers' shrimp. Each farmer's pond is assigned a code to serve the traceability when necessary. The enterprises support 20% - 100% of shrimp seed, 100% effective microorganism (EM), technical advice for farmers, and answer for shrimp commodity with a price higher than the market from 10,000 - 30,000 VND / kg.
To promote this result, from now to 2020, Bac Lieu will continue to develop these key cultured species (black tiger shrimp, white leg shrimp, mud crab, and mollusk) and expand the scale of super intensive, intensive and semi-intensive shrimp farming areas. The province will also develop stably and sustainably clean shrimp farming model (shrimp - forest, forest - shrimp); model of ecological/ organic shrimp farming (shrimp - rice, giant freshwater shrimp with rice). Besides, promoting the implementation of industrialization and modernization of rearing, diversifying farming objects and farming methods will be done in the future. Then they plan to identify super intensive farming model with high technology application is the highlight, in order to create a breakthrough in aquaculture of the province. In addition, Bac Lieu will also prioritize the replication of 2-stage shrimp farming model; encourage the application of good manufacturing practices (GMP), the aquaculture certification (VietGAP, GlobalGAP, ASC or Organic); manage the farming areas through the identification code to create farming areas with large, high quality, and stable commodity yields, which will ensure traceability. Furthermore, it is inevitable to build shrimp production chain ensuring disease free in accordance with the provisions of the World Organization for Animal Health and Australia's requirements to be able to export whole frozen shrimp to Australia.
At the same time, Bac Lieu province will focus on investing in infrastructure (irrigation, transportation, power grids, focal seafood markets) for aquaculture, especially in intensive and semi-intensive farming areas and concentrated seed production areas to ensure intensive farming conditions and farming safety; promote investment in the construction of high-tech aquatic seed production zones (scale of 200ha). High-tech applying aquaculture areas (scale of 15,000 - 20,000ha) are closely associated with processing and consumption. Then there will be favorable conditions for businesses to cooperate and produce in accordance with the value chain of aquatic products, with an area of 1,000 ha.
STRENGTHENING THE CAPTURE FISHERIES
Fishing is considered as one of the province's economic strengths. To promote this advantage, Bac Lieu province has issued a resolution on marine economic development with the common goal of determinedly getting rich from the sea.
In order to realize the goal of restructuring the fishing industry, from now to 2020, Bac Lieu will continue to effectively implement the Seafood Capture Program in the Marine Economic Development Strategy; comply with the international regulations on aquatic resource protection in order to overcome the European Commission's warning of Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fishing (IUU). Bac Lieu province is going to mobilize all resources to invest in building offshore fishing fleets with large capacity and invested modern equipment, which will allow long-term fishing on the sea and improve the efficiency of fishing in the far regions of the sea. They will contribute to protecting national sovereignty at sea.
There are still other plans to complete such as: implementing the program of modernizing fishing vessels to be suitable for each method of fishing to ensure feasibility and efficiency; transforming objects, fishing seasons and fishing grounds in the direction of fishing aquatic species of high economic value, good consumption market; in the direction of being associated with building and protecting fishing product brands, ensuring sources of raw materials for processing, and exporting stable output which is strictly controlled on quality, food safety and hygiene. Besides, plans also include reasonable structure of fleet fishing inshore and offshore; developing model of fishing groups and teams to support each other in declaring other fishing, search and rescue activities, in ensuring safety for people and means of fishing operating on the sea; well organizing fishing logistic services, especially types of marine services to reduce production costs.
In addition, good performance of the rescue work at sea according to the mottoes "4 in place" and "3 principles" will ensure safety for people and means of fishing operating on the sea, play a role as a strong support for fishermen, will maintain the security of the sea and contribute to the national sovereignty firm protection on the sea. Continues to organize the implementation of the Prime Minister's Decision No. 48 on a number of policies, the province means to encourage and support fishermen in fishing and aquaculture. In particular, the policies support services of fishing in the far regions of the sea. The Prime Minister's Decision No. 48 also includes the Government Decrees on a number of fisheries development policies; encourage economic sectors to invest in new construction and upgrade version of processing facilities and fishery logistic services up to prescribed standards.
With these above important solutions, the implementation of restructuring production, aquaculture and fishing promise new breakthroughs.
Huyen Anh