Pacific leaders are making substantial progress in finalizing maritime boundaries and securing ocean entitlements, critical to maintaining sovereignty, managing fisheries, and ensuring food security. Speaking in Honiara, Solomon Islands, Stuart Minchin, Director-General of the Pacific Community (SPC), emphasized that the region is setting a global benchmark in ocean management.
Over the past two decades, the SPC has actively coordinated the settlement of maritime boundaries, achieving 75% agreement among the Pacific nations—a figure that significantly surpasses the global average of 60%. This year, important strides include Tuvalu’s completion of its boundary treaty and the advancement of the Cook Islands’ Manihiki Plateau submission, with three new Extended Continental Shelf (ECS) submissions sent to the UN this July.
A pivotal development in this initiative is the introduction of the Pacific Maritime Boundaries Dashboard. Minchin describes this tool as an authoritative regional resource that tracks maritime boundaries, ECS submissions, and National Ocean Policies, aimed at enhancing transparency and accountability.
He underscores that maritime boundaries are crucial, not just as legal lines on maps but as foundations for sustainable fisheries management, secure access to deep-sea minerals, and overall ocean management, providing certainty for investors and supporting conservation efforts. Delays in finalizing these boundaries, Minchin warned, could undermine regional security and resilience against climate change.
The region recently received new funding through the Unlocking Blue Pacific Prosperity initiative, backed by the Bezos Earth Fund and other partners, to aid Pacific countries in concluding their boundary work and strengthening ocean management.
Minchin’s address reiterated the urgent need for continued momentum and investment, stressing that the Pacific’s collective action could set a precedent in global ocean governance, securing essential rights while addressing climate change’s challenges.
Overall, these developments signal a positive trajectory for the Pacific in asserting its leadership in ocean management, enhancing regional sovereignty, and safeguarding the livelihoods of its communities. The success of these initiatives shows the power of regional solidarity and serves as a model for broader global efforts in marine conservation and climate resilience.
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