(04 June 2015) – The European Commission launched today a public consultation, to collect views on how the EU could contribute to achieving better international governance of oceans and seas to the benefit of sustainable blue growth.
The international discussion on ocean governance is growing as the use of marine resources is increasing globally.
Illegal fishing, uncontrolled seabed mining, marine litter are only some of the challenges that need to be addressed through global cooperation. The existing international ocean governance framework could be ineffective in addressing such maritime challenges; particularly in the 60 per cent of the oceans that are beyond national jurisdictions.
The EU plays a prominent role in this discussion. The blue economy already produces 5% of its GDP and provides nearly 5 million jobs.
In order to assess the best path for action and the EU’s role in this, the Commission is reaching out to all stakeholders – international organisations, state actors, NGOs, businesses, the research community, academia and civil society – via an online public consultation.
The public consultation will run until 15th September 2015.