For three days, conversations revolved around how the oceans, with their vast resources and biodiversity, can become a pillar of sustainability and part of the solution to such important challenges as climate change, the sustainable energy transition, food , innovation and poverty reduction.
In her speech, Marcia Tambutti, ECLAC biodiversity specialist, highlighted the extraordinary marine wealth of Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the persistent challenges that the countries of the region face to sustainably use and conserve their marine territories. He highlighted that Latin America and the Caribbean is one of the regions with the greatest marine diversity in the world, but that this remains practically invisible to the majority of the population. For example, he pointed out that 23 of the 31 countries in the region have more marine territory than land, but that the efforts of the vast majority of governments in terms of protected areas have focused on the land surface, even more so, that 15 Countries have less than 2% of their marine area protected. He also highlighted that, in the last three decades, the collapsed fish populations in the region have doubled, and that overexploitation has affected capture fishing, which decreased by 34% between 1999 and 2019, directly affecting food security and the livelihoods of coastal communities.
Despite these challenges, the region is home to ten of the world’s large marine ecosystems, an invaluable resource that positions Latin America and the Caribbean as a key player in reversing global trends and leading a change towards sustainability. However, this leadership depends on transforming extractive models into inclusive and responsible economies. In this sense, ECLAC highlighted the need to reorient current development models towards a more sustainable and inclusive approach, with special emphasis on key sectors such as fishing and marine tourism. Likewise, he highlighted the opportunities provided by the elimination of subsidies for overfishing, pointing out that, although the region represents a little more than 5% of these subsidies worldwide, their elimination could protect the national fishing and artisanal industry of Latin America and the Caribbean. . This becomes relevant compared to countries with greater proportions of incentives, which take advantage of them to navigate long distances and fish within the limits of the exclusive economic zones of the region and others. However, only a third of the countries have acceded to the WTO Agreement that contemplates this measure. A diplomatic leadership of countries such as Costa Rica, which co-chairs the Third Ocean Conference with France, and Colombia, which chairs the Global Biodiversity Framework until the end of 2026, which also includes a goal for the elimination and restructuring of harmful subsidies for biodiversity, constitutes an essential part of the solution. This action would not only contribute to the recovery of the oceans, but also to the sustainability of coastal economies, strengthening their resilience and promoting more balanced development.
The event also allowed the exchange of good practices, such as nature-based solutions to mitigate the impacts of disasters, in addition to reflecting on the opportunities that Latin America and the Caribbean can take advantage of in the coming years.
The closing of the event was marked by a sense of cooperation. The experts agreed that the integration of the blue economy into national policies is not only possible, but necessary. ECLAC reaffirmed its commitment to member states to work on concrete strategies that prioritize marine sustainability, maximize the economic potential of the oceans and strengthen regional governance, aligning with the 2030 Agenda and international commitments on biodiversity and sustainability.
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