Declaration

Declaration of the Indian Ocean Rim Association on the Blue Economy in the Indian Ocean Region

Dhaka, Bangladesh

4-5 September, 2019

Preamble:

WE, the Ministers and representatives of the Member States of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (hereinafter referred to as “IORA”), the Commonwealth of Australia, the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, the Union of the Comoros, the Republic of India, the Republic of Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Republic of Kenya, the Republic of Madagascar, Malaysia, the Republic of Maldives, the Republic of Mauritius, the Republic of Mozambique, the Sultanate of Oman, the Republic of Seychelles, the Republic of Singapore, the Federal Republic of Somalia, the Republic of South Africa, the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, the Kingdom of Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and the Republic of Yemen attended the Third IORA Blue Economy Ministerial Conference (BEC-III) in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on 4-5 September, 2019;

RECOGNIZING the Indian Ocean and its coastal and marine resources as a vital source for food security, renewable energy, job creation, poverty alleviation, trade, tourism and investment opportunity and connectivity;

REAFFIRMING the objectives and principles of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), 1982 and other relevant international conventions and instruments relating to the oceans and seas, as well as the commitments of the parties to these instruments;

RECALLING the recommendations and the Declarations of the First and Second Ministerial Blue Economy Conference held in Pointe aux Piment, Mauritius on 2-3 September 2015 and Jakarta, Indonesia on 8–10 May 2017;

UPHOLDING the solidarity, unity and the spirit of collaboration in the Blue Economy among the IORA Member States and Dialogue Partners for balanced and sustainable economic development in the Indian Ocean Rim region;

APPRECIATING the inauguration of Third IORA Blue Economy Ministerial Conference (BEC-III) by Her Excellency Sheikh Hasina, Honourable Prime Minister of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh;

NOTING the inclusion of a stand-alone goal relating to the Blue Economy in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Agenda-2030;

REITERATING the need for the IORA Member States to harness the potential of the Blue Economy to promote economic growth, job creation, trade and investment, and contribute to food security and poverty alleviation, whilst safeguarding the ocean’s health through the sustainable development of its resources;

UNITED in our determination to combat the global menace of marine pollution which inflicts great disruption on marine ecosystems and causes irreversible damage to marine life;

EMPHASIZING the means and methods related to development of infrastructure and human resources inter alia for deep sea fishing and mariculture, promotion of maritime transport and connectivity, cooperation in seabed exploration and sustainable utilization of other marine resources;

ENCOURAGING the IORA Member States to design appropriate policy frameworks so that critical private investments and multilateral financing are attracted to Blue Economy initiatives, in order to secure sustainable and inclusive growth;

STRESSING the importance of promoting entrepreneurship and innovation, with a special focus on promoting youth and women’s engagement as well as generating decent employment opportunitiesin the sustainable development of the Blue Economy;

RECOGNIZING the role of cooperation and collaboration among IORA Member States as well as between public and private institutions to enhance skills development, transfer of marine technology and capacity building;

HIGHLIGHTING that inclusion, ownership and empowerment of communities are among the core elements of implementing the Blue Economy;

ACKNOWLEDGING the need for enhanced national level coordination on maritime issues for maritime sovereignty, capacity building in education, innovation and research, strengthening associated institutional mechanism and assuring ocean governance;

CONCERNED about the emerging threats arising from human acts that are placingoceanic biodiversity and marine resources into jeopardy such as overexploitation of resources, ocean acidification, increase in marine plastics debris and nutrient pollution, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, over fishing, destructive fishing, drug and human trafficking by sea, maritime crime and terrorism, illegal mining and the impacts of global climate change;

URGING implementation of the call of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for sustainable development (2021-2030) by the Member States in cooperation with Dialogue Partners in materializing the SDGs and Blue Economy;

NOTING Bangladesh’s readiness to play a leading role ensuring cooperation on Blue Economy initiatives in the region;

 BEC-III - 04.09.19 Key Takeaways [SAJ - 23 hr]