The Director of the University of Ghana’s Institute of Environment and Sanitation Studies, Professor Kwasi Appeaning Addo has emphasized the urgency of developing a thorough blue economy plan.
A blue ocean economy is one that sustainably uses ocean resources for job creation, improved livelihoods, and economic growth while maintaining the health of the ocean ecosystem.
He explained that, provided a thorough plan can be put in place, this has the ability to address issues and support economic recovery.
The nation is well-positioned to benefit from the world’s ocean resources if responsibly managed, with a coastline that is over 550 kilometers long, extends to roughly 200 nautical miles seaward, and comprises a total exclusive economic zone of about 218,000 square kilometers.
At the moment, the fishing sector alone provides a living for over 2.5 million Ghanaians and contributes about 4% of our GDP.
The ocean, which is home to numerous intricate ecosystems, is, however, seriously threatened by resource depletion, climate change, and pollution of the ocean’s marine and nutrient ecosystems.
These dangers put additional strain on ecological systems like biodiversity and natural infrastructure while also posing health, safety, and financial issues on a global scale.
Thus, the necessity of adopting a holistic plan to efficiently utilize the nation’s maritime resources is underscored by Professor Addo’s call for a complete blue economy strategy.
Fisheries, aquaculture, maritime transportation, marine tourism, offshore energy, and coastal infrastructure development would all be included in such a plan.
He said this at a National Blue Economy summit titled Ghana’s Sustainable Ocean Plan – the journey so far in Accra, and urged government to engage various stakeholders including academia, industry experts and relevant government agencies toward harnessing the sector’s potential.
This collaboration, Professor Addo – who’s also a Sustainable Ocean Plan (SOP) advisor – said, can help identify key areas of focus, establish policies and regulations, and develop sustainable practices that balance economic growth with environmental conservation.
“Let’s develop a comprehensive blue economy strategy guided by a sustainable ocean plan, this is critical. We need to develop a strategy, and that strategy must anchored within the sustainable ocean plan that’s being developed. Once that is done we can achieve a lot,” he stated.
“The ocean has potential to provide huge employment opportunities for our people. The ocean has potential to reduce the poverty level in this country if we can manage the resources within it effectively,” Professor Addo added.
