Scope of pre-assessment Pre-assessment aims

Moody Marine Ltd Page 6

1. INTRODUCTION

This report sets out the results of a pre-assessment of the Vietnamese Blue Swimming crab trap tangle net fishery Portunus pelagicus, in Kien Giang province, South West Vietnam in relation to the Marine Stewardship Councils MSC Principles and Criteria for Sustainable Fishing the ‘MSC standard’. It must be stressed that this report can provide guidance only, and the outcome of a main assessment will be the subject of deliberation by an assessment team and may not be influenced by this pre- assessment.

1.1 Scope of pre-assessment

The MSC Guidelines to Certifiers specifies that the unit of certification is The fishery or fish stock =biologically distinct unit combined with the fishing methodgear and practice =vessels pursuing the fish of that stock. The definition of the fishery under pre-assessment is therefore as follows: Species: Blue swimming crab Portunuspelagicus Geographical Area: Kien Giang provinceGulf of Thailand Method of Capture: Tangle net Management System: Open access and minimum mesh size Management Authority Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Client Group: World Wildlife Fund

1.2 Pre-assessment aims

The principal aims of the pre-assessment are to determine, on the basis of information made available by the client, the position of the fishery principally in relation to the Marine Stewardship Council MSC Principles and Criteria. In particular, the pre-assessment will: • Outline the key components of the fishery and determine the scope of the main certification • Identify possible obstacles or problems for certification The assessors have undertaken as comprehensive verification of information, or contacting of stakeholders within the time scale involved Table 1, This involved a co-ordinated meeting with DARD and local stakeholders, together with a tour of crab landing sites and interviews with fishermen, collectors and middlemen. The full assessment will undertake more extensive consultation and verification of documentation. The full assessment will be open to public scrutiny and comment, as part of the MSC standing consultative procedures. This report sets out: • The information on which the pre-assessment report is based • The background of the fishery • The location and scale of the fishery • Fishery management arrangements • Other relevant fisheries • Key stakeholders in the fishery Moody Marine Ltd Page 7 • Preliminary evaluation of the fishery against the MSC Principles and Criteria • Limit of identification of landings from the fishery • Obstacles or problems for certification • A recommendation as to whether or not and in what form the fishery should move to main assessment 2 INFORMATION SOURCES USED The pre-assessment is based upon the following information sources:

2.1 Meetings as follows: