St. John’s, Antigua: The sustainable use of ocean resources represents a key aspect of the economic development of the OECS region in conformity with best international practices of the 1982 United Nations Convention on The Law of the Sea and other related instruments, according to a report in the Antigua Observer.
The OECS Secretariat, which is into final preparations for broad ranging talks on ocean governance later this week, said proper and effective management of the region’s ocean resources will help to enhance the benefits to be gained from persons who use the resources of the sea to make a living.
The Observer stated that Peter Murray, Programme Officer of the OECS Environment and Sustainable Development Unit OECS ESDU, who is leading the team, said the sea is a mechanism for transportation and most of what comes in our countries comes via the sea.
“We are talking about tourism; we are talking oil and gas fisheries; all the things that are sources of economic benefits. And then there is the broader picture. There are the services we tend to see, the marines spaces as proving goods but we don’t see it as providing services for example transportation,” Murray said.
Murray and the team at the OECS EDSU are hosting at least 60 delegates who gathered in St. Lucia on Wednesday to discuss major issues associated with the management of the region’s marine resources. He added that the most topical concept will be integrating the use of marine space within the region and looking at the marine space as an integrated framework would generate a lot of thought.
“That is why we brought along senior decision policy makers in ministries relevant to oceans related matters the essential reason is that they will now be in a position to direct the change and the change has got to be one that looks at the integration”, Murray said.
The current OECS secretariat ocean governance programme is geared towards enabling the OECS secretariat to create an institutional framework for regional cooperation in trans-boundary oceans management, strengthen national and regional capacities for the development and implementation of ocean law and policy within the framework of sub-regional cooperation and facilitating the provision of technical services in the area of sustainable ocean resources and marine environmental management, according to the Observer report.
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