Caribbean States and Territories re-affirmed their commitment to implement the International Maritime Organization’s standards for safe, secure and sustainable shipping to support the growth of their blue economy.
This focus on the blue economy is part of a global effort to scale-up investments and harness the full social and economic potential of oceans, rivers and lakes in a sustainable way. This would have positive benefits for economic growth and job creation.
Ministers met at a High Level Symposium in Jamaica a few days ago under the theme ‘Maritime Transportation: Harnessing the Blue Economy for the Sustainable Development of the Caribbean’. As over 90% of trade in the Caribbean is transported by ships, this is an important focus for many states. Ministers and representatives from Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cayman Islands, Curacao, the Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sint Maarten, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago were present.
“Our understanding of sustainable development today embraces a concern both for the capacity of the earth’s natural systems and for the social and, not least, economic challenges faced by us all”, said the IMO’s Secretary-General Kitack Lim. “A prosperous, smart and green shipping industry can contribute to a blue economy from which we will all benefit.”
