The Blue Economy: Thoughts To Action Olufemi Awoyemi October 17, 2019
“ There is increasing interest globally in the Blue Economy and BlueTech as hu huma mans ns red edisco iscover er th the e im impor ortance tance of of th the e oc ocea ean …Problems like ocean warming, plastic gyres and ocean rise have us looking at the ocean again since it is our past and our future …even as we address human needs for food, water, energy, medicine and coastal real estate. ” - Michael B. Jones, The Maritime Alliance
Four things I wish to achieve Provide an Overview/Understanding of the Blue Economy … .and the ecosystem ; Present a PESTEL analysis describing the macro-environmental factors to be addressed in moving from Thought To Action ; Offer more specifics around the Blueish Colour of Littoral State Economies; and Offer my thoughts on what is possible and posers for the panel session to follow.
The Blue Economy: What it means and the Ecosystem…
Simplifying The Climate Talk/ Ecosystem - Nature…. Negative: Smog etc Erosion, Negative: deforestation, etc Positive : Wind Turbines, etc Positive : Agriculture, etc Rising Tides, Negative: Wildfires, lava Negative: Typhons, Tsunamis etc etc Positive : Rain for Positive : Solar Energy, Harvest, Thermal Power etc etc
What is a ‘Marine’ or ‘Blue’ Economy? …. The blue or marine economy is the ecosystem of economic activities centred on trade and actions around large bodies of water ranging from rivers to oceans , which are managed in a way as to ensure environmental sustainability. The economy extends beyond ports and terminals to fishing, waste management, hospitality ( beachside hotels bars ), Power ( offshore energy ) and and wind and tidal Transportation ( ships, barges, rigs and other floating vessels ). According to the World Bank , the Blue Economy is, “ sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem. ” While the EU , on the other hand, defines it as, “ All Economic activities related to Oceans, Seas and Coasts ” .
The BLUE Economy! …. Over the last decade, the blue economy has taken on greater importance in the context of an increasingly resource constrained world and a climate-threatened global ecosystem.
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Sustainable Blue Economy – What It Means…. As the single largest natural asset on the planet which represents some 99% of the earth’s living volume, the Ocean delivers numerous benefits to humanity: The ocean is responsible for the oxygen in every other breath we take. It supplies 15% of humanity’s protein needs . It helps to slow climate change by absorbing 30 percent of carbon dioxide emissions and 90 percent of the excess heat trapped by greenhouse gases. It serves as the highway for some 90 percent of internationally traded goods, via the shipping sector. If the ocean were a country, at several trillion dollars per year of economic activity, the ocean would rank 7th on the list of largest nations by GDP.
Sustainable Blue Economy – What It Means…. /2 It is the source of millions of jobs , in fisheries, aquaculture, shipping, tourism, energy production & other sectors. It is also the source of some 30% of the world’s oil and gas resources but this equation must change if we are to succeed in the necessary transition to a low carbon development pathway. Millions of the world’s poorest people depend heavily on the ocean and coastal resources for their sustenance and livelihoods. Small-scale fishing provides about half of the world’s harvested seafood – but provides 44 times as many jobs per ton of fish as industrial fisheries do!
The Marine Ecosystem & SDG’s …. “In simplest terms, there are two elements for the Blue Economy. The first is the necessity of protecting – and restoring where needed – the existing ocean resource base that already supplies food and livelihoods to billions of people . Depleted fish stocks that are permitted to recover can ultimately deliver higher, sustainable fish yields and associated jobs . If protected and restored, coastal ecosystems such as coral reefs and mangroves can deliver increased coastal protection benefits from storm surges and sea level rise. Coastal areas that reduce nutrient pollution and eliminate hypoxic areas can, in turn, enjoy higher fish yields and increased tourism revenue. ”
The Marine Ecosystem & SDGs…. /2 “The other side of the Blue Economy is where opportunities may exist for enhanced or new sustainable economic activity derived from the ocean. Progress and prospects for ocean-related energy, such as offshore wind and tidal energy, appear promising. Opportunities also exist to ‘monetize’ the value of highly effective coastal carbon stocks such as mangroves and seagrasses into carbon finance markets, or ‘blue carbon. ’ Globally, aquaculture has been growing at a compounded rate of almost 9% since 1980, and now supplies nearly half of the world’s consumed fish protein. ”
The Marine Ecosystem & SDGs…. /3 “However, much of it remains unsustainable in terms of pollution and impacts on species diversity, making this a critical Blue Economy opportunity to introduce more sustainable practices, such as integrated multi-trophic aquaculture. With support from GEF and UNDP, the IMO and the global shipping sector are taking pro- active steps to minimize the sector’s contribution to climate change through improved energy efficiency, which can, in turn, enhance the sector’s profitability, a true Blue Economy approach . ”
Comparative African Blue Economy …. The territorial waters and exclusive economic zones (EEZs) within African Coastal States ( about 39 out of Africa’s 54 countries are either coastal states or islands ) are extensive, measuring some 13 million km², and the continental shelves extend over a total area of 6.5m km². With an area of approximately 30m km², Africa is the 2 nd largest continent on the planet, equal to 2/3 the size of Asia, and perhaps 3x the size of Europe. The continent is surrounded by oceanic expanses ( Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean ), and by two semi-enclosed seas: the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea ). Africa is also home to the 2 nd largest and longest rivers and aquatic areas in the world ( the Nile and the Congo ). There are 6 international river basins covering approximately 64% of the continent’s land area. The African Great Lakes constitute 27% of surface freshwater, the largest proportion in the world.
Comparative African Blue Economy …. The Blue Economy has the potential to create both economic growth & development. The added African wealth that can be generated from the ocean is conservatively valued at US$ 4 trillion , which is equivalent to the GDP of countries in East Asia and the Pacific in 2017 with estimated goods and services of $2.5 trillion annually. If, collectively, the African oceans were a country, they would constitute the eighth largest economy in the world just after India and perhaps just ahead of Italy .
Words we need to clear up: * Giant * Potential * Narratives * Reputation * Best Practice *Policy
Table 1: Performance Indicators of Ports In Eastern and Southern Africa
The PESTEL Analysis: Moving from Thought to Action …
The problem facing a sustainable Blue Economy in Nigeria centres on 6 key strategic difficulties that relate to the foll:
POLITICAL: The lack of control by coastal states of their natural water resources and coast lines has resulted in an inefficient management of country’s waterways mainly located in the Southern region of the country. Nigeria’s South hosts the country’s Oil and Gas resources, international waterways and littoral ports. The natural geography and geology of the country which places these resources in one part of the nation creates a major point of political conflict with the North. An indication of this conflict is the ongoing litigations between the Lagos State Inland Waterways and the Federal Inland Waterways Services over control of waterway revenues in Lagos State. The problem over who controls inland waterways revenue has been a long- drawn battle since the early 2000 ’s and shows the innate conflict between federal and state governments over resource control. The lack of broad political consensus on the nature of Nigeria’s fiscal federalism has deep economic implications , including making the blue economy a fragile concept.
ACTIONs: Autonomy - The fiscal arrangement in Nigeria needs to be revisited to have greater autonomy to enable littoral states generate the private capital investments needed to improve the quality of maritime ecosystems and expand blue local economies in sustainable manners. Centralization of policy and investment - the federal level cannot bring about a fast-paced improvement in the maritime sector; the Littoral states marine fronts should be treated as the equivalent of crude oil and maritime entitled to derivation proceeds from revenues at the ports. The applicable principles to the green economy : where agricultural output would also be given similar treatment. The approach proposed towards developing the blue economy would mean that their may be need for a constitutional review and this would require political buy in from all parts of the country.
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