Seine net mending - 'one job, two profits'

(Baonghean.vn) - In the past 3 years, the purse seine fishing profession in Quynh Long commune (Quynh Luu) has been very effective; each trip to the sea, fishermen earn hundreds of millions of dong. To maintain and develop the purse seine profession, the commune has established net repair facilities to meet the fishing conditions of fishermen.

» Images denouncing Mr. Nguyen Dinh Thuc's violations

» Priest Nguyen Dinh Thuc incites parishioners

Quynh Long commune currently has 174 vessels, of which 85 are used for fishing using lead-drawn purse seine, the rest are used for 2-pole and 4-pole casting... In the past 3 years, purse seine fishing has been very effective, each purse seine boat catches 10-15 tons/trip, creating jobs for more than 1,000 workers at sea.

Since the purse seine fishing has become effective, fishermen have thought about investing in sturdy “golden nets” that are suitable for fishing conditions. Therefore, over 80 purse seine repair facilities have been established in the commune, concentrated in Minh Thanh, Thanh Cong, Dai Bac villages…

Net mending is mainly done by women in the commune, this job has a good income of 3 - 4 million VND/month. Photo: Viet Hung

Ms. Ho Thi Duc in Phu Lien village said that after the boat docked, all the nets were brought back to the facility for mending. Every day, we were hired by the boat owner to mend the nets with an income of 100-120 thousand VND; if we completely remade the nets, we would be paid 150-200 thousand VND/day.

Fisherman Tran Xuan Danh - captain of the iron-hulled boat NA 99929 in Dai Bac village said that while fishing at sea, the net often gets caught on reefs, obstacles, or during operation, the net is unfortunately torn. After returning to shore, the net is brought home to be mended, this task is left to family members and additional workers. Thanks to that, the net mending profession creates jobs for many people, especially women, with an income of 20-30 million/year.

For nets with minor tears, fishermen take advantage of the time to return to shore to mend the nets on board. Photo: Viet Hung

With 85 purse seine vessels corresponding to 85 net mending facilities, each facility will hire 10-15 workers to mend the nets. Each time the purse seine is released into the sea for fishing, it will cover an area of ​​thousands of square meters, so the net mending work must be meticulous and technically correct.

Mr. Tran Quang Ve - Secretary of the Quynh Long Commune Party Committee said that nets have been associated with fishermen at sea for generations and are indispensable fishing tools when catching seafood. The whole commune has about 200 workers who are skilled in mending nets. Since the beginning of the purse seine trade, the commune only had about 10 people who knew how to mend nets. Gradually, those who knew how to mend nets taught new learners, so now the majority of workers, mainly women in the commune, know how to mend nets skillfully.

In addition to mending nets for local boats, many women are hired by other coastal communes such as Tien Thuy and Son Hai to mend nets with a good income. In addition to having an effective purse seine fishing fleet, Quynh Long commune also has a skilled net mending team, supporting each other in exploiting and catching seafood, promoting local economic development./.

Viet Hung