Blue Economy: AU, Nigeria Strategize

The blue economy, or the ocean economy, is a term used to describe the economic activities associated with the oceans and seas. The World Bank defines the blue economy as the “sustainable use of ocean resources to benefit economies, livelihoods and ocean ecosystem health.

Representatives from the African Union (AU) and Nigeria have created a plan to improve Nigeria’s national strategy for developing its ocean-based economy. This was decided after a three-day meeting in Abuja from August 8 to August 10, 2024.

At the start of this meeting, Adegboyega Oyetola, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, mentioned that the ocean economy offers both big challenges and exciting opportunities for sustainable growth.

During the event, the Minister explained, “Given the vast potential of our national marine resources, we decided to set up a special committee to focus on sustainable ocean economy strategies in Nigeria. This led to the establishment of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

“Today is important because we’re here to look over the preliminary plan for our Marine and Blue Economy. We’re aligning our management structures and creating strategies and action plans to boost ocean economy initiatives. This plan aims to outline how to make the most of our ocean resources while protecting them for today’s and future generations.”

In a statement released after the meeting, the participants aimed to “highlight important issues, obstacles, and steps that could lead to key focus areas in creating Nigeria’s National Ocean Economy Strategy, based on the broader African Ocean Economy Strategy and its Implementation Plan.

“They also wanted to get feedback to refine the key points identified by the expert in various areas for developing the National Ocean Economy Strategy’s action plans.”

The meeting also encouraged the Nigerian government to establish ocean management and coordination systems at both regional and national levels as part of implementing the national ocean economy strategy. It emphasized the importance of raising awareness, enhancing skills, and sharing experiences and successful strategies in applying ocean economy concepts.

The recommendations included “looking into a bio-blue-fund, setting up a fisheries commission, and national coast guards. It was noted that it’s important to include small-scale fishermen in the strategy and to consider blue energy sources like tidal, wind, and floating solar panels.”

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