Table of Contents

---

---

Summary

What are the policy drivers and use-cases for ocean accounts?

High-level policy support for ocean accounting is driven by a recognition of oceans in fostering opportunities for economic growth and development. Blue economy strategies are often framed within sustainable development, with the aim of maintaining the flow of goods and services from the environment that underly economic activities. Policy targets for sustainable development are informed by international commitments to environmental and biodiversity targets. Ocean accounts also provide an opportunity for the monitoring and evaluation of integrated ocean management strategies.

Interest or progress in the development of ocean accounts have been driven by national priorities, in analysing and evaluating the performance of specific maritime sectors, including coastal tourism, shipping and fisheries. Pilots also identify the environmental impact of economic activities, such as linking the tourism sector to waste generation. Other pilots are exploratory, performed in areas with existing data or supported by international initiatives to further environmental accounting. These initiatives support sustainable development and the monitoring of existing management strategies, such as marine protected areas.

What are the key indicators that are being compiled from ocean accounts?

Development of Ocean Accounts is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Within the 17 overarching goals, Ocean Accounts are driven specifically by the following SDGs:

Goal 14: Conserve and sustainably use the ocean, sea, and marine resources for sustainable development

Goal 15.9: By 2020, integrate ecosystems and biodiversity values into national and local planning, development processes and poverty reduction strategies, and accounts

Goal 17.19: By 2030, build on existing initiatives to develop measurements of progress on sustainable development that complement GDP, and support statistical capacity building in developing countries

To achieve these SDGs, national Ocean Accounts aim to provide three key high-level indicators: ocean product, changes in the ocean balance sheet and ocean income.

Ocean product measures the ‘outputs’ of human activities in or around the ocean. These are measured as ‘means’ or ‘inputs’ that achieve other social and economic goals; monetary components of the ocean product account aggregate to ocean GDP or net domestic product (NDP).

Change in the ocean balance sheet provides a sustainability indicator and includes the valuation of ‘natural capital’ such as fish stocks, coastal wetlands and seabed minerals. These may also extend to cultural and indigenous values. Together, these fall under the heading of ‘non-produced’ assets and are compiled alongside ‘produced assets’, such as port infrastructure. Changes in the balance sheet integrate physical and monetary changes.

Ocean income measures benefits to the public and national interests from the ocean. These are measured as ‘ends’ or ‘outcomes’ of policy; income accounts aggregate to net national income (NNI), though in practice national statistics offices usually produce gross national income (GNI). Income measures can be disaggregated to show the importance of the ocean for different segments of the population. Furthermore, income can include non-monetary types of income, though these are often expressed in monetary equivalents.

What is the main thematic focus of ocean accounts?

The general purpose of Ocean accounts is to inform and enable public policy decision-making related to oceans and associated resources. Ocean Accounts are relevant to and practically useful for ocean sciences (including all relevant physical, biological, and social sciences, and interdisciplinary activities connecting these disciplinary domains), national statistical systems and evidence-based governance of oceans. As such, the rationale for building Ocean Accounts can be defined by a thematic focus in science, statistics, and governance.

Scientific themes of Ocean Accounts: Modern ocean science is characterised by increasing reliance on complex and large-scale data inputs, and by a proliferation of distinct expert communities operating within and between the broad domains of physical, biological, and social research. In this context, the Ocean Accounts Framework can provide a useful means to integrate scientific data across disciplines, provide a more holistic understanding of complex systems, and communicate science to decision-makers.

Statistical themes of Ocean Accounts: Environmental-economic accounting has been conducted in over 90 countries over the past 35 years. At least 60 countries regularly produce one or more SEEA account and Ocean Accounts provide the pathway to advance this work toward the inclusion of ocean ecosystems which are presently underrepresented but have gained recent focus by official national statistics offices with the advent of SDG 14.

Governance themes of Ocean Accounts: At local, national, and international scales, oceans governance processes are increasingly expected to deliver a wide and balanced range of social, economic, and environmental objectives to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These governance objectives create demands for holistic and integrated analyses of ocean-based development, informed by Ocean Accounts. The creation of Ocean Accounts is fundamental to these policy commitments because the accounts provide the essential information to establish baselines and monitor progress towards or away from policy goals relevant to the commitments made. Without creating and sustaining Ocean Accounts and the data and statistical systems needed to support them, it is difficult to know whether any of the policies are achieving their desired ends.

What are key gaps in implementation that should be the focus of effort moving forwards?

Relative to the inclusion of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems in SEEA use-cases, oceans are presently under-represented in efforts of environmental-economic accounting. As such, the oceans importance to life on earth from a socioeconomic perspective is still not well understood.

Key to a better scientific understanding of the ocean will be addressing data gaps in marine science. While there are global data sets that can provide information, less data are available at smaller scales, and, in many countries, collecting the required, vast amount of data is limited by financial resources. Data and knowledge gaps also limit the application of social sciences, including economics, to managing our collective impacts on the ocean. Pilot and case studies conducted throughout the world which seek to advance connectivity of scientific and socioeconomic data for the purpose of Ocean Account building provide a critical feedback loop and have identified the following specific limitations or needs:

• Lack of consensus in the scientific community on specific environmental indicators which accurately identify ecosystem health and function through time.

• Limited funding opportunities to ensure the sustained collection of necessary data which inform Ocean Accounts on an annual and sub-annual basis (especially in low-middle income nations).

• Separate collection of ocean accounts-related data by differing governmental agencies with limited crosstalk, leading to the creation of silos of information rather than an integrated, holistic compilation.

• Lack of disaggregation of marine-specific data from larger data collection efforts which combine data across both terrestrial, aquatic, and marine systems (e.g., Mining and Energy or Fisheries).

• Need for improved reporting systems and visualization tools for the dissemination of Ocean Accounts data to the public and policy makers. These will increase the ability of crosstalk between independent governmental agencies which are stakeholders in the overall account building process.

1. Introduction to Ocean Accounts

The ocean is a vital source of livelihood, employment, nutrition and economic growth. Healthy ocean ecosystems contribute to the inclusive development and poverty reduction, regulate the climate, and are essential for a more sustainable future. However, these benefits have been hindered by rampant marine pollution, ocean acidification and warming, depletion of fish stocks and species, destructive fishing practices, and unstainable trade and transport – most of which caused by human activities. Furthermore, inadequate ocean governance has drastically deteriorated the health of the marine and coastal ecosystems. Thus, making integrated decisions towards the sustainable ocean requires integrated statistical information that encompasses the interconnected nature of the ocean economy, health of coastal and marine resources and ecosystems, and ocean governance.

An ocean account is a structured compilation—of consistent and comparable information: maps, data, statistics and indicators—concerning marine and coastal environments, including related social circumstances and economic activity. Taking an accounting approach, an Ocean Accounts Framework adapts two international statistical standards, namely:

The System of National Accounts (SNA)

The SNA provides a set of recommendations on how to compile monetary measures of economic activity including a set of coherent, consistent and integrated macroeconomic accounts. Among commonly known measures are Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and National Balance Sheet. SNA accounts are one of the fundamental building blocks of macroeconomic statistics forming a basis for economic analysis and policy formulation.

Most of the ocean-related economic activities are recorded within the scope of the SNA but may not be able to be clearly distinguished due to the structures and classifications used in the core SNA. The Ocean Accounts Framework provides guidelines and recommendations for the compilation of Ocean Economy Satellite Accounts to form an understanding of the total contribution of the ocean to the economy. The Ocean Accounts Framework also elaborates on the measure of Ocean Wealth – the most important indicator of ocean sustainability – that includes both produced assets (e.g. ports) and non-produced assets (e.g. mangroves, coral reefs and seagrasses).

The System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA)

The SEEA provides a framework that integrates physical environmental data with monetary data from the SNA, to provide a more comprehensive and multipurpose view of interrelationships between the economy and the environment, and the stocks and changes in stocks of environmental assets, as they bring benefits to humanity. The SEEA contains internationally agreed concepts, definitions, classifications accounting rules and tables for producing internationally comparable statistics and accounts, which are interoperable with the SNA. The SEEA can be applied not only to data on fish stocks, but also to sources of land-based pollutants and the value of ecosystem services such as coastal protection and recreation.

The Ocean Accounts Framework is based on the principles, components, and classifications of the SEEA and extends them, where necessary, to better apply to the ocean.

Ocean accounts are fundamentally a collection of accounts or modules that are organised in terms of a conceptual framework that describes (1) interactions between the economy and the environment, (2) the stocks and changes in stocks of environmental assets (natural capital) that provide benefits to people, and (3) social and governance factors affecting the status and condition of environmental assets and associated benefits.

Ocean accounts are designed to support coherent and holistic reporting and assessment of the wide range of social, economic, and environmental conditions related to oceans. This broad perspective is intended to be consistent with the practical information requirements of decision-making to achieve sustainable development.

2. Global Demand for Ocean Accounts

Ocean-based sectors are is regarded among the fastest growing economic sectors in both developed and developing countries is no surprise. Under a “business ‑as ‑usual” scenario, the ocean economy has been projected to worth over USD 3 trillion by 2030. This implies that to make the most of our marine environment and the resources therein in a sustainable manner, a critical challenge is how to preserve coastal and marine ecosystems and the numerous services that they provide for nature and society. This challenge for countries in the Global South and North confronts the force of environmental and socio-economic advancement, as marine resources dwindle, and sources of livelihood severely threatened. Unfortunately, the environmental consequences of ocean economic choices - both local and global - are often overlooked when planning decisions are made.

Researchers, organisations and policy-makers both in the Global South and Global North are beginning to recognize that the ocean (even beyond the traditional sectors)  has importance for global sustainable development and national economies which are largely unaccounted for.  As a  result,  the interest in ocean accounts is growing in recent times in parallel with the broader System of Environmental-Economic Accounting, a satellite system to the National Accounts of Countries. This interest is largely supported by several national, regional and global level commitments that are geared at measuring biodiversity beyond economic performance and growth which relegates the environment, including coastal and marine resources, to the status of an externality.

The United Nations Statistical Commission (UNSC) in 2018 launched the revision process of System of Environmental-Economic Accounting – Experimental Ecosystem Accounting (SEEA-EEA), with dedicated working groups established to focus on four priority areas including spatial areas, ecosystem condition, ecosystem services and valuation. Concerned by the need to close the gap in understanding between the statistics/accounting, economics and biodiversity community, an important area of the SEEA EEA revision is also centred on the potential for the SEEA to “support policy and decision-making concerning the conservation and enhancement of biodiversity at levels other than ecosystems”, with a sub-group on accounting for biodiversity in established in February 2020. The UNSC in 2018 also specifically recognized the need for proper accounting for the ocean and requested further work on this area in the context of the SEEA-EEA revision process. The latest draft of the SEEA Ecosystem Accounting (October 2020) has strengthened the incorporation of the ocean in its core concepts and structures as part of the broader ecosystems. It also proposed a dedicated section on accounting for the ocean that underscores the cross-cutting nature of the ocean in statistical measurements across the SNA, the SEEA Central Framework and SEEA Ecosystem Accounting in support of decision-making about the ocean.

Decision-making about the ocean is increasingly directed by laws, policies, and processes designed to pursue defined strategic objectives, and plan the use of ocean space and resources in an integrated manner. Within ocean governance, marine spatial planning (MSP) is a prominent framework that analyses and allocates the spatial and temporal distribution of human activities to achieve ecological, economic and social objectives. It has been implemented by at least 70 countries across all major regions and endorsed by IOC-UNESCO and the European Union. MSP may be used to manage conflicts for resource and space, and account for specific and cumulative pressures on the environment, in support of a sustainable ‘blue’ economy. To address pressures on biodiversity and cultural values, decision makers may implement area-based measures, such as marine protected areas (MPAs), towards the achievement of policy targets. MPAs, as defined by the IUCN are “clearly defined [marine] geographical space, recognised, dedicated and managed, through legal or other effective means, to achieve the long-term conservation of nature with associated ecosystem services and cultural values”. The implementation and evaluation of both MSP and MPAs relies on a comprehensive understanding of the environmental assets present and changes to the extent and condition of underlying assets over time.

The  World Bank Group,  which oversees the work of the Wealth Accounting and the Valuation of Ecosystem Services Global Partnership Program (WAVES-GPP), have been supporting countries in the Global South in developing national Natural Capital Accounts (NCA) to inform natural resource management decisions. Adopting the SEEA conceptual framework, the WAVES-GPP has been advancing its commitments of monitoring trends and the impact of economic and social development on the environment. One of those commitments includes WAVES-GPP involvement in natural capital accounting of living natural resources in the ocean. The WAVES-GPP has supported its member countries notably by leading a process of testing ecosystem accounting and providing guidance and capacity building for implementation. For instance, Since 2014, WAVES-GPP has been working with authorities in Madagascar to integrate NCA into economic and social development planning. This has led to the development of accounts (Water accounts, Forest accounts, Mineral accounts, Tourism accounts, and Macroeconomic indicators) that are relevant ocean management and decision making.

Several elements necessary for ocean accounts are embedded in the UN Convention on Biological Diversity’s (CBD) framework. Out of the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Targets of the Convention, as identified in its Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, two are aimed at mainstreaming biodiversity in policies and national accounts. Likewise, SEEA has been identified to provide information for at least seven Aichi Targets lacking indicators, while it is also in direct and indirect consonance with 61 of the current Aichi Target indicators.  are fully or partially aligned with the SEEA. With the CBD’s Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 approaching its end, a successor Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework that is underway is being designed to measure ecosystems diversity, their extent, condition and services generated while also helping make the case for protecting and conserving

The Intergovernmental Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Service (IPBES) 2019 Global Assessment on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services identified wealth accounting and natural capital accounting as “possible approaches to balancing economic growth and conservation of nature and its contributions and recognizing trade-offs, value pluralism and long-term goals”. It further highlights the instrumentalities of wealth and natural capital accounting can be included in smart policy mixes within or across issues that are related to the ocean economy including landscape, food, forest, conservation, marine, water, cities, energy, and sustainable economies.

In response to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) Resolution 72/6  on “Committing to the effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Asia and the Pacific” and Resolution 72/9 requesting the ESCAP “to undertake an assessment of capacity development needs of the countries in Asia and the Pacific for the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 in collaboration with United Nations specialized agencies and international, regional and sub-regional organizations”, a Regional Capacity Assessment carried out in 2018. A crucial fallout of this Regional Capacity Assessment is a commitment towards the development of ocean accounts which applies the SEEA framework to the ocean.

Several African countries have committed to moving the value of nature to the centre of their development strategies through the Gaborone Declaration for Sustainability in Africa.  This Declaration commits its current 10 signatory countries (Botswana, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa and Tanzania) to a new model of development that brings the value of natural resources to the centre of all economic decision-making and takes into account the vital role natural capital plays in promoting sustainable development. Within this Declaration, countries must:

• integrate the value of nature into their national policies and programs, recognizing that nature is needed for economic growth and sustainability.

• reduce poverty by transitioning agriculture, extractive industries, fisheries and other economic uses of nature to practices that promote sustainable employment, food security, sustainable energy and the protection of nature, including protected areas.

• Build the knowledge, capacity and policy networks to promote leadership and a new model in the field of sustainable development to increase momentum for positive change.

The Blue Natural Capital Financing Facility (BNCFF) is an initiative run by IUCN with support from the Government of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, which support the development of sound, investable blue natural capital projects with clear ecosystem service benefits, based on multiple income streams and appropriate risk-return profiles. This set of projects known as the “Blue Natural Capital projects” aim to protect, restore and enhance natural ecosystems to better support climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts whilst conserving biodiversity and other vital coastal and marine natural resources. The Blue Natural Capital Positive Impacts Management System provides a management system for the assessment, monitoring and reporting of investment impact for Blue Natural Capital (BNC) projects. The system provides definitions, motivations, key performance indicators, and data sources necessary to i) establish baseline conditions, and ii) monitor progress. Therefore, the BNCFF approach aligns with the ocean accounts framework as only projects that demonstrate ecosystem accounting, as well as other related socio-economic measurements, are considered to benefit from an innovative, blended financing model necessary to access different revenue streams and attract new investors. Overall, the BNCFF:

• Identifies projects building on the blue natural capital approach to conserve and sustainably manage coastal and marine ecosystems as part of a promising business model.

• Assists project partners in assessing, preparing and structuring blue natural capital opportunities into bankable investments as part of a potential blended finance approach. Offers guidance for readiness to attract sustainable financing using innovative, blended financing models to access different revenue streams and attract new investors.

• Applies a rigorous Positive Impacts Framework to measure, report and verify projects’ contributions to achieving climate as well as sustainable development goals.

Recognising the need to leverage on existing networks and coalitions, and overcome barriers to accelerate business integrating the value of nature in their decision making, in 2018, the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), IUCN, the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and Oppla launched a three-year campaign called We Value Nature. This campaign is supporting businesses and the natural capital community to make valuing nature the new normal for businesses across Europe. Particularly, this project is committed to:

• Supporting the natural capital community and sharing research, resources and best practice.

• Helping businesses improve their risk management, communication with investors, stakeholder engagement and anticipation of future legislation.

• Making a difference by targeting businesses and barriers where we expect to make the greatest impact.

Under the Natural Capital Protocol Programme set up by the Natural Capital Coalition to provide a standardized framework for business to identify, measure and value their impacts and dependencies on natural capital, the Natural Capital Protocol for the Ocean is currently being developed to reinforce positive relationships between the businesses community and the ocean and mitigate negative ones. The purpose of the Protocol is to provide a standardized framework that incorporates the unique value chains of ocean goods and services, and the special characteristics of ocean resources, allowing ocean-based businesses and initiatives to identify, measure and value their impacts and dependencies on marine natural capital. Based on four stages and nine steps management framework, the Natural Capital Protocol for the Ocean  is designed to:

• Generate trusted, credible, and actionable information to enhance understanding, inform risk analysis, and influence decision-making.

• Provide an integrated approach to highlight inter-linkages across many sectors and will identify and broaden the understanding of connections and trade-offs between ecosystem services, land-sea

• Assist a diverse range of sectors, helping them to generate value, for themselves and society, and conserving the natural capital that both depend upon.

Meanwhile, the Conservation International (CI), and the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2017 have commenced the development of an Oceans Supplement to assist with the implementation of the Natural Capital Protocol for the Ocean Protocol to provide additional guidance and business insights, helping ocean-related sectors and businesses to:

• Identify material impacts and dependencies on healthy ocean resources.

• Identify risks and opportunities to the business model.

• Support the measurement and valuation of these impacts and dependencies, consolidate existing approaches and tools into a consistent framework.

• Address the underlying drivers of changes in natural capital— such as climate change.

• Develop practical examples and case studies to demonstrate business

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has over the years put forward some reports on measuring ocean industries and their impacts.  In its  2019 report  on Rethinking Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, two ways to advance economic measurement at the national level to provide public authorities further evidential support for the ocean were recommended including:

• Standardising approaches to measuring and valuing ocean industries, and integrating them into national accounting via satellite accounts.

• Measuring natural marine resources and ecosystem services, while also exploring ways to integrate them into national accounting frameworks. Also, an entire chapter (chapter 4) in the 2019 report Rethinking Innovation for a Sustainable Ocean Economy was dedicated to innovative approaches to measuring the ocean economy.  This chapter provided: 

• A comprehensive assessment of current practices in measuring the ocean economy, identifying challenges and possible solutions, both on the ocean economy’s economic and environmental components existing and new approaches to measuring the ocean economy including

• Points to the development of satellite accounts for the ocean as a possible way forward, with lessons learned from different countries and practical advice based on OECD national accounting perspectives;

• Shares findings on how ocean observatories, as scientific infrastructure and technical operational systems, are impacting our societies and the wider economy. Beyond their crucial role in our understanding of the ocean, they will increasingly feed into more evidence-based information via socio-economic indicators, to guide policy-makers’ investments and priority-setting.

Following the realisation that the application of SEEA as to date limited to the ocean environments, due to a range of conceptual and technical challenges (e.g. concerning the classification of ocean ecosystems and associated benefits, across large and dynamic spatial scales),  the Global Ocean Accounts Partnership (GOAP) is currently at the forefront of promoting a global framework for ocean accounts.  GOAP is doing this by establishing a coordination and communication structure for diverse member institutions, who have a common interest to ensure that the values and benefits of oceans are recognized and accounted for in decision-making about social and economic development. It has so far developed a detailed Technical Guideline for ocean accounting framework and organised a number of collaborative capacity-building activities that support the development, maintenance, and ongoing use in decision-making, of holistic ocean accounts that link together social, environmental and economic statistics.

The High Level Panel (Ocean Panel) for Sustainable Ocean Economy in recent times have recognised the utility of ocean accounts in fulfilling most of its core mandates of catalysing, developing and supporting solutions for ocean health and wealth; highlighting the value-creation potential of balancing economic production and ocean protection; harmonising and multiplying the impact of multiple ocean initiatives; leveraging the implementation of SDG 14 and all SDGs; etc.  In this regard, several “Blue Papers” commissioned by the Ocean Panel acknowledges ocean accounts as a go-to framework capable of ensuring a sustainable ocean economy. The Blue Paper on “National Accounting for the Ocean and Ocean Economy” does not only reiterate the importance of national accounting in achieving a sustainable ocean economy but identified some key principles and methods necessary for national ocean accounting.  Also, the paper on “Coastal Development: Resilience, Restoration and Infrastructure Requirements ”  argued that the incorporation of ocean accounts into national accounting systems is essential in addressing risks to coastal ecosystem services. To ensure socio-economic resilience of communities, as well as social security particularly in the face of anthropogenic and natural disaster, the paper further recommends that “the multiple benefits coastal communities derive for the ocean and coastal services should be included in the valuing and accounting of the ocean.

3. Global progress and projects

The assessment of global progress on ocean accounting for sustainable development is based on and adapts the components and structure of the Environment Statistics Diagnostic Tool to the focus of ocean policy, statistics and accounts. The Tool is organised along seven steps of strategic planning as follows:

1. STATEMENT OF STRATEGY AND POLICY PRIORITIES: Identify national visions, concerns, priorities, and existing plans related to the ocean.

2. INSTITUTIONS: Identify stakeholders including producers and users of related information as well as relevant institutional mechanisms currently in place.

3. KNOWLEDGE: Identify key national data sources.

4. PROGRESS: Understand what progress has already been made relevant to ocean accounts.

5. CONTEXT: Identify related activities that could benefit from and contribute to ocean accounts.

6. PRIORITIES: Determine priorities for action to develop ocean accounts.

7. CONSTRAINTS AND OPPORTUNITIES: Assess (a) constraints to implementing ocean accounts and (b) opportunities for immediate actions to address these constraints.

The assessment centres around progress, by countries and institutions, on the implementation of components of ocean accounts as well as relevant data-focused initiatives that could provide essential statistical foundation for developing ocean accounts. In addition, it reviews underlying policy commitments, targets and indicators underpinning demands for integrated ocean data and statistics.

The assessment is based on information available online in English up to November 2020. It may not fully represent actual progress made to date by countries and institutions especially if work has not yet been published or documentation is only available in local languages. Thus, this report should be viewed as a living document that necessitates continued updates.

According to the assessment, there are national and regional variations in the scope, focus and stages of development of ocean accounts, reflecting its wide applications to suit diverse arrays of ocean policy priorities, needs and specific situations. At least 25 countries and institutions have piloted components of ocean accounts or initiated data developments for advancing ocean accounts. The pilot accounts and data harmonization sought to address and improve integrated evidence on a range of different issues, concerning: the value of the ocean economy, the ocean-tourism nexus, status fo marine and coastal ecosystems, land-based and marine-based ocean pollution including plastic debris, marine spatial planning, incorporation of ocean ecosystem service values into economic planning, and small-scale fisheries. Details are outlined in this section.

3.1 Progress in the Asia-Pacific

3.1.1 Australia

The management of Australia’s coastal natural capital is predominately conducted by Australian Parks service. Australian Marine Parks are a core component of Australia’s 3.3 million square kilometre National Representative System of Marine Protected Areas, which includes state, territory, and Commonwealth-managed marine parks. There are 58 marine parks managed by the Director of National Parks, supported by Parks Australia. The objective of the Director is that marine parks are healthy, resilient, and well-managed to enhance Australia’s wellbeing.

Recently, ocean accounting standards and methods were applied to compile information on the ecosystems in Geographe Marine Park, Western Australia, including the extent and condition of those ecosystems, the services and benefits they provide, and potential pressures. This includes information on commercial and recreational fisheries, marine recreational activities, carbon sequestration and storage, and vessel transportation and parking. The pilot study showed that, overall:

• Ecosystems in Geographe Marine Park contributed approximately AUD316,000 in 2019 to the gross operating surplus of the local economy through whale watching (AUD254,000) and commercial fishing (AUD62,000).

• Recreational fishers took more than 12,000 fishing trips in 2018, which is valued at over AUD2.2 million (consumer surplus).

• Seagrass meadows in Geographe Marine Park were estimated to store approximately 6.2 million tonnes of carbon in soil, and each year sequester approximately a further 27,569 tonnes (net) based on the estimates of seagrass extent in 2014.

• The annual amount sequestered these seagrass meadows is equivalent to 1,500 households’ average carbon emissions per annum, with an estimated dollar value of AUD443,865 (assumed AUD16.10 per tonne).

• The information produced as part of the project enhances awareness and provides greater depth to the current understanding of the multiple benefits provided by the assets in Geographe Marine Park, informs risk assessments and prioritise future monitoring and surveillance activities, and presents a supporting narrative on the assets in Geographe Marine Park. The accounting process also produced an information asset that can be invested in providing a systematic stock take of the information available to Parks Australia, informed priorities for ongoing monitoring, and identifying information gaps and providing methods that can be refined.

The information asset can be added to in the future with additional data collection. Standardisation of the collection of ecological data and transformation methods will support the use of information to inform the management of Australia’s oceans. The ocean accounting pilot for Geographe Marine Park is the first ocean accounting project under the Environmental Economic Accounting: A common National Approach Strategy and Action Plan. A number of accounts can be scaled up at the national level in the short term.

3.1.2 China

China has placed emphasis on natural captital accounting as one of the three governance measures alongside natural resource balance sheets and the audit of outgoing officials responsible for natural resource management. The country has extensive experiences in terrestrial environmental and ecosystem accounting including the project on Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (NCAVES) being coordinated by National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). However, applications and extensions to coastal and marine ecosystems in China are presently limited but receiving increasing attention with its marine economy accounting for 9.3% of GDP in 2018 and the growing concerns particularly related to:

• land reclamation from the sea

• impacts from coastal development

• fishing intensity

• marine pollution including plastic debris

• loss of ecosystem services, and oil spills

Led by the fourth Institute of Oceanography, China completed an ocean accounts pilot study in 2019 focusing on mangrove assets in Beihai Bay in order to improve understanding of how ocean accounts could be conducted for China’s diverse coastal ecosystems, comprising 18,000 km and 14,000 km of mainland and island coastlines respectively. The focus of mangrove assets also allowed potential linkages to other national initiatives including the national greenhouse gas inventory, blue carbon and other coastal restoration programmes. The pilot results indicated that mangrove areas in Beihai Bay had expanded from 4.68 km² to 32.79 km² over 30 years (1988-2018) with an estimated total carbon stock of 0.67 million tonnes in 2019. China planned to extend the ocean accounts pilot study to other areas and other coastal ecosystems of the country, and link carbon accounting to the national and local greenhouse gas inventories, with a particular focus on coastal wetlands.

3.1.3 Fiji

The ocean is central to the Fijian culture, lives and livelihoods. However the government has recently become concerned that climate change (ocean acidification and warming), overfishing and intensive resource extraction, marine pollution and waste, poorly planned land and coastal development, and marine security are rapidly creating a need for better management strategies and approaches to improve the country’s sustainable management of the ocean. Fiji’s Ministry of Economy will soon be launching its National Ocean Policy (NOP) – a policy framework that governs coordinated action towards sustainable use and conservation of Fiji’s ocean. It sets to manage 100% of its ocean with 30% declared as marine protected areas by 2030. The NOP also places emphasis on incorporating ocean values into development planning processes and national accounts that supports alignment between ocean management objectives and development strategies.

Several initiatives focusing on ocean data integration and analysis have been undertaken in Fiji. Such initiatives include, but not limited to, marine atlas database, identification of marine bioregions and biophysically special unique marine areas, and national marine ecosystem service valuation. In addition, the Fiji Bureau of Statistics (FBoS) regularly publishes subsistence and informal fishing and aquaculture GVA as part of its GDP compilation. The FBoS also compiles preliminary Tourism Satellite Accounts, SEEA water, energy, and waste accounts, and produces population GIS maps based on the population and housing census data.

3.1.4 Indonesia

National concerns related to the ocean in Indonesia include marine plastic debris, IUU fishing, overfishing, and the loss of coastal and marine resources due to unsustainable use and exploitation and livelihoods of small-scale fishers. Indonesia has an overarching Ocean Policy that establishes the highest policy framework to coordinate the implementation of government institutions’ programmes and activities in the area of ocean affairs towards sustainable management and utilization of marine resources. The Policy’s seven pillars and 76 strategies are in line with and elaborate on the “marine goal” set forth in the 2005-2025 long-term development plan (RPJPN) – the latter have been translated into a series of national medium‐term development plans (RPJMN).

The need for sustainably managing the ocean and SDG14 is integrated in the latest RPJMN (2020-2024). Some examples are the inclusion of targets of extending MPA areas; increasing fish, salt and seaweed production; finalizing coastal zoning plans; improving governance of fisheries management areas; reducing GHG emissions in the coastal and marine sector; expanding mangrove ecosystem rehabilitation areas; and increasing maritime GDP. As part of the ocean governance, additionally, the country has established and implemented Marine Spatial Planning, led by Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP), at the national level as well as in 22 out of 34 provinces.

Indonesia has generated a wealth of publicly accessible ocean-related data and maps that could provide integrated evidence towards informing the implementation of Indonesian Ocean Policy. In particular, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) has long been, and strong expertise in, implementing the SNA and the SEEA-CF including their applications such as environmentally adjusted GDP or Green GDP, experimenting the inclusion of non-produced assets in balance sheets, and Tourism Satellite Accounts. The BPS also has experience in SEEA-EEA implementation focusing on peatlands in Sumatera and Kalimantan.

3.1.5 Japan

Promoting secure and sustainable use of the ocean while protecting the marine environment are key policy directions stipulated in Japan’s third Basic Plan on Ocean Policy (May, 2018). With the estimated contribution of marine sector at 1.6% of GDP in 2005, the Ocean Policy prioritizes harnessing marine energy, securing and growing maritime transport, and targeting fisheries as a rising industry for ocean development in the next 10 years. These strategic directions were set in recognition of the new potential of marine energy development, the major role of maritime transport in Japan’s trade as well as concerns over declining fish stock.

In terms of statistical foundation for ocean accounts, Japan’s 187 sector Input-Output tables include detailed information adequate for distinguishing land-based and ocean-based activities for the proper derivation of the contribution of the ocean to the economy such as differentiating marine from inland water fisheries in the fisheries’ component of national accounts. Other time series information related to fisheries is also maintained by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Additionally, Japan incorporated selected non-produced assets (land, mineral and energy resources, and non-cultivated biological resources) in its Balance Sheet where their granular data could contribute to measuring non-produced ocean assets in the context of overall national wealth.

3.1.6 Malaysia

Malaysia’s concerns regarding the mismanagement of their ocean economy chiefly relate to marine litter, overfishing, and lack of policy coordination. This is especially true along Malaysia’s western coast (Malacca Strait), which is the most productive in terms of fisheries and natural resources but shares territory with bordering nations, making it strategically important to the Malaysian economy. It is one of the main international shipping waterways connecting the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. It also yields one of the highest fish landings, including both commercial and traditional fisheries, in the country contributing to overall economic growth as well as livelihoods of coastal fishermen. At the same time, Malaysia is facing a number of ocean related challenges including IUU fishing, overfishing land-based and sea-based pollution especially marine litter. In the Straits of Malacca in particular, the expansion of the fisheries sector, rapid coastal development and urbanization, and issues surrounding climate change further exacerbate the problems and pose a serious concern to the sustainability of living resources in the area.

In Malaysia, the Department of Statistics (DOSM) with technical support from University of Malaya piloted ocean accounts in 2019 to examine the topic of sustainable fisheries in the Straits of Malacca. The study – integrating data on fish landings, chlorophyll A, sea surface temperature and land cover – found an inverse relationship between primary production and temperature, and the loss of mangrove areas corresponded with a decline in certain fish species. The ocean accounts pilot study was also received as an effective way to address the need for improved coordination among government agencies with relevant ocean mandates such as Ministry of Economic Affairs, Institute of Maritime Affairs, Department of Fisheries, Department of Environment, Marine Parks, Marine Department, Ministry of Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change, and Department of Statistics.

As part of the continuation of ocean accounts work in Malaysia, the research team has conducted an academic study to address the emerging issue of marine debris. The study is expected to be published in 2021.

3.1.7 The Maldives

The Maldives have recently committed to several policy changes to improve ocean economy management. In keeping with the President’s direction and the 2019-2023 Strategic Action Plan (SAP) of “sustainable development in harmony with ocean-friendly practices”, as well as addressing key national concerns such as loss of habitats due to tourism, intensive use of chemicals in the agriculture sector, marine pollution particularly plastics, coastal erosion and sea level rise, several policies are put in place to ensure that economic growth is accompanied by progress in ocean management. One illustrative example is the case of a tourism sector. As the top income generating (26% of GDP in 2019) and resource intensive industry, the Maldives plans to further increase tourist arrivals by 20% and 35,000 more tourism beds by 2023 while ensuring the sustainable use of natural resources, environmental protection from waste pollution and damage to marine ecosystems, and use of renewable energy across the sector. The country, with Ministry of Environment (MoEn) as a lead agency, also aims to promote blue economy initiatives, develop Marine Spatial Planning, declare at least 20% of its waters as protected areas, and protect and manage at least 10% of coral reefs and 20% of wetlands and mangroves in each atoll. In addition, the Government puts particular emphasis on improving evidence base, including ocean data and statistics, necessary for informing the implementation, monitoring and reporting of its integrated policies and programmes.

The Maldives’ statistical system has already geared towards supporting these efforts. GDP compiled by National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) provides disaggregation for fisheries, tourism, transportation, as well as travel agencies and support services. The NBS has piloted SEEA-CF accounts (water and solid waste) and planned to develop the Tourism Satellite Accounts (TSA) on a regular basis, which are core elements underpinning the production of TSA-SEEA accounts. In addition, MoEn is in the process of developing a State of the Environment (SoE) database as well as implementing a natural capital accounting project which will have a strong ocean focus. The Maldives also has extensive experience in scientific assessments and measurements of coral reef ecosystems and recently launched a nationwide coral reef restoration and rehabilitation programme.

3.1.8 Myanmar

Myanmar’s management and protection of its coastal natural capital has been recently supported through its plan in sustainable development. Conserving and protecting coastal and marine areas through integrated resource planning and sustainable use practices is one of the key goals of recently released 2018-2030 Myanmar Sustainable Development Plan. This is largely due to a particular concern regarding coastal and marine resources and ecosystems is the loss of mangrove areas resulted from rapid economic development that would undermine the mangroves’ ability to provide essential goods and services particularly to coastal population in Ayeyarwady Delta and along the Tanintharyi and Rakhine Coastlines.

The Ministry of Planning and Finance, the Central Statistical Organization, and the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry have begun the assessment of values of mangrove ecosystem services in coastal areas. It is expected that the assessment will provide solid economic arguments for conservation and restoration efforts and inform coastal development planning processes.

3.1.9 The Philippines

Coastal and marine resources play a pivotal role in the Philippine economy, with the majority of population living in coastal zones. The Philippines began the measurement of the contribution of ocean-based industries to the economy in 2009 with the estimates of revenues, costs of goods sold and employment of selected maritime industries. The most recent revision in 2019 benefited from methodological improvements following a satellite accounting approach that expand the economic activities to include those that either take place in the ocean, receive input from the ocean, and/or provide goods and services to the ocean. The results indicated that, in 2018, the share of the ocean economy to GDP was 3.6% with a 7.8% year-on-year growth and accounted for 6.0% of total employment. The fishing sector contributed the largest share of the Philippine ocean economy at 29% in 2018. The ocean economy satellite accounts are instrumental in the monitoring and assessment of ocean-related economic targets set in the 2017-2022 Philippine Development Plan (PDP).

In addition, the Philippines has had a long history of environmental and economic accounting implementation since the first project led by Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in 1991. These efforts have led to the production of a series of pilot accounts that support national resources management policies and integration of natural capital accounting in development planning and policy analysis – of relevance to the ocean is fisheries and mangrove asset accounts led by the Philippines Statistics Authority and its predecessors.

3.1.10 Republic of Korea

The Republic of Korea has engaged in both the maintenance of ocean economy satellite accounts and changes in ocean governance to improve managmenet of its ocean economy. Korea Maritime Institute (KMI) maintains ocean economy satellite accounts for Republic of Korea in response to the need for assessing the size and composition of its ocean economy to inform marine and fisheries sector development planning. the Korea’s ocean economy is defined by ten industries in accordance with the 2018 Special Classification of Korea’s Marine and Fisheries Industry. The latest estimates for 2015 indicated that the country’s ocean economy accounted for 3.98% of Gross Output, 2.52% of GVA and 2.5% of total employment.

In terms of ocean governance, the KMI is working towards shifting the national coastal and marine management model from Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) that resulted in complex zoning schemes to the evidence-driven Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) Management using marine ecosystem service based (MES) approach. The development of CMSP is based on a spatial assessment of marine ecosystem assets and services – provisioning, regulating, supporting and cultural – as a basis for delineating use zones in Korea’s waters. The MES-based CMSP will also be a key spatial decision-making tool for evaluating the suitability of new use/development activities based on the potential costs measured by changes in ecosystem service values and benefits of the use of the area. The MES-based CMSP which is expected to be completed in 2021 is part of the national and sub-national implementation of the 2019-2028 Master Plan on Marine Spatial Management for sustainable use of coastal and marine resources.

3.1.11 Samoa

Coastal and marine resources are the main component of the Samoan economy and the country is highly concerned how by both internal (e.g., over tourism, waste management) and external (e.g., sea level rise, warming) processes affect these resources. For Samoa, improved management of these resources through an accounting framework begins in the tourism sector. The tourism industry plays a vital role in the Samoan economy in terms of contribution to GDP and job creation. As a small island nation, however, growth of the industry means that already scarce natural resources need to be shared between visitors and local population. The tourism industry, while benefitting from ocean and marine resources, also contributes to the degradation of marine ecosystems. Understanding these inter-relationships through integrated statistics is key to proper policy planning towards sustainable management and development of the tourism industry and Samoa’s natural resources, including the ocean, in accordance with the Strategy for the Development of Samoa, Samoa Ocean Strategy, the National Environment Sector Plan and the Tourism Sector Plan.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE), in its role as a lead agency in coordinating the environment sector including MSP-related initiatives, in collaboration with Samoa Bureau of Statistics (SBS) piloted ocean accounts in 2019 with a focus on sustainable development of the tourism industry. Since Samoa did not have Tourism Satellite Accounts (TSA) – a set of accounts that facilitate measurement of economic contributions of tourism to the economy – the initial stage was to produce pilot TSA and estimate tourism disaggregation of key SEEA accounts that are regularly compiled by Samoa Bureau of Statistics. The results showed that in 2018 tourism directly contributed to 12.4% of GDP and 21.5% of employment, while using 11.5% of the water and 10.1% of the electricity.

To further improve the applications of ocean accounts for national ocean strategy and governance, Samoa has extended the ocean accounts pilot with a particular focus on issues related to land-based pollution to the ocean starting with solid waste. The pilot extension is linked with the initial pilot study by spatially disaggregating waste generation by tourist and local population. The island of Upolu was chosen as the study site to analyze the impacts of land-based marine debris to the extent, condition and services of nearby coastal and marine ecosystems. The pilot extension is expected to be completed by December 2020.

3.1.12 Thailand

Thailand’s advances toward improved management of it’s coastal and marine resources is driven by its National strategy and development plans. The key objective of environmentally friendly growth in the 20-year National Strategy (2018-2037) and the 12^th National Economic and Social Development Plan (2017-2021) is to promote mutual and balanced growth in economic, environmental – both terrestrial and marine – and quality of life aspects. Thailand recognizes a tourism sector as the main engine of inclusive growth but at the same time one of the main contributors to the imbalanced use of natural resources and environmental degradation particularly along the coastal provinces.

In response to stakeholders’ need for integrated environmental-economic data for tourism sustainability planning and management, Thailand, led by the National Statistical Office and the National Science and Technology Development Agency, piloted ocean accounts in 2019 using the main tourist destinations in southern Thailand (Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, Trang, and Satun or so-called Andaman Tourism Cluster) as a pilot site. Unlike Samoa, Thailand has regularly produced TSA but no prior SEEA compilations. Thus, the focus of the pilot study was to integrate tourism and environment statistics into TSA-SEEA accounts (water, waste, energy, greenhouse gas emissions) and produce integrated maps to locate areas with high risks of exceeding carrying capacity for accommodating tourism activities. The study highlighted that although only one in nine persons in the five provinces were tourists, tourism-related activities used 21% of the water, 57% of the energy and was responsible for 26% of the waste and 28% of the greenhouse gas emissions. The high-risk areas and proposed sites for conservation were also identified.

Current progress on ocean accounts implementation in Thailand are twofold. First, the methodologies used in the pilot study are being replicated in other Tourism Clusters throughout the country. With knowledge gained from the 2019 ocean accounts pilot study, in addition, Thailand is embarking on a new project to pilot the integration of ocean accounts, OHI+ and MSP in Phang Nga Bay with an aim to create an integrated decision support system to inform policies and programmes concerning the sustainable management and conservation of coastal and marine resources. The replication studies and the first phase of the Phang Nga Bay project are expected to be completed by March and September 2021 respectively.

3.1.13 Viet Nam

Issues of concerns regarding the ocean in Viet Nam include marine pollution (land-based and sea-based) particularly plastics, sea level rise, seawater intrusion, disasters, IUU fishing and overfishing. With half of the country being coastal, there are many stakeholders with mandates and initiatives relevant to the ocean such as Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Construction, Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism, Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology, Viet Nam Administration of Seas and Islands, Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment, Research Institute for Marine Fisheries, General Statistics Office as well as local governments.

Quang Ninh province is one of the main economic hubs of Viet Nam. It hosts Hạ Long Bay, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the world-famous travel destination, and key marine national park and protected areas which received over 12 million visitors in 2018. However, tourism activities have led to several environmental impacts caused by unmanaged solid waste and other marine pollution from land-based and marine-based sources. These issues are further amplified by rapid urbanization and economic growth with rising coal mines and heavy industrial parks.

In 2019, the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment (ISPONRE) coordinated an interdepartmental working group, comprising key stakeholders such as Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Viet Nam Academy of Science and Technology, Viet Nam Administration of Seas and Islands and General Statistics Office, to conduct an ocean accounts pilot study to comprehensively assess marine pollution from economic activities including tourism and its impacts on key ocean ecosystems in Quang Ninh. The study found a spatial association between a sharp decline in the areas of mangroves, sea grasses and coral reefs and human-induced factors such as land conversion, aquaculture practices, land-based pollution from tourism and marine-based pollution. Building on the initial pilot study, Viet Nam is conducting an economic valuation of coastal and marine ecosystem services in Quang Ninh to support the incorporation of the ocean into economic planning.

3.2 Progress in the Americas

3.2.1 Canada

Canada’s priorities for ensuring the sustainability of the ocean include: promoting sustainable fisheries, reducing marine pollution, resolving conflicts among competing uses, and minimizing alteration of marine habitats. According to estimates for 2016, the marine sector contributed 1.6% to GDP and similarly accounted for 1.6% of employment. There is substantial variation between provinces with the sector contributing to 20.3% of GDP and 12% of employment in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is the federal lead for safeguarding Canadian waters and managing Canada's fisheries, oceans and freshwater resources. Among other mandates of the department are in collaboration with other departments, levels of government and stakeholders, developing a comprehensive blue economy strategy, developing an oceans protection plan, designating marine protected areas and supporting marine spatial planning.

Canada’s ocean mandate is decentralized and therefore so is its data. DFO is collaborating with Statistics Canada in a pilot project to apply the Ocean Accounts Framework harmonize key ocean-related data. The pilot includes integrating spatial data on the extent and condition of marine habitats, improving measurement of the marine economy and applying international standards to measuring market and non-market ecosystem services.

One of the main challenges in motivating the pilot has been connecting with potential partners across sectors to identify appropriate data. Raising awareness of the benefits of ocean accounting is also ongoing. Statistics Canada and DFO plan to publish initial pilot results, such as selected ecosystems types and new estimates of the marine economy. Canada has agreed to host the Second Global Dialogue on Ocean Accounting, which will likely be held online in April 2021.

3.2.2 Mexico

Mexico’s concerns related to the ocean and its resources include overfishing, illegal fishing, climate change and sea level rise, land-use changes and mismanagement (agricultural runoff), and habitat degradation due to ocean warming. To help address these concerns, Mexico is a High Level Panel (Ocean Panel) member for the Sustainable Ocean Economy. Mexico has adopted both the SNA and SEEA and was the first Latin American country to compile environmental economic accounts in 1990. Since 1994, Mexico’s national institute of statistics and geography (INEGI) has published updates every five years on its System of Environmental and Economic Accounts (SCEEM). These include water, forest, fisheries, and material flow accounts. The emphasis behind ocean accounting work under these ongoing national environmental accounting efforts stems from the following priorities:

• Increasing the economic benefits of small-scale fisheries (without increasing take),

• Increase the sustainability of these small-scale fisheries,

• Increase the sustainable harvest of ocean-based renewable energy sources.

Mexico is taking part in an innovative multi-year UN project (2017- 2021) to advance the theory and practice of ecosystem accounting.  It joins four other countries - Brazil, China, India and South Africa- as part of the Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (NCAVES) project which aims to develop SEEA ecosystem accounts. Specifically, in Mexico, this project is developing pilot accounts for the states of Aguascalientes, Colima, and Veracruz and compile ecosystem extent, condition, and services accounts at the state and national level. The Colima and Veracruz pilot project is of particular interest to Ocean Accounts, since these states contain coastal geography. Work on these pilot projects was most recently reported on in June of 2019 at the SEEA-EEA forum, showing progress in spatial mapping and remote sensing along coastal regions of Mexico and specifically highlighted the need to incorporate ecosystem services and expand mapping efforts to ocean and coastal ecosystems. In addition to nationally directed pilot studies to advance ecosystem accounts, there are numerous sub-national ocean-related pilot studies lead by various non-profit groups, such as the Environmental Defense Fund’s (EDF) work on community-level fisheries, Comunidad y Biodiversidad (COBI) MPA monitoring, the Nature Conservancy’s work with the state government of Quintana Roo to create the Coastal Zone Management Trust to insure coral reefs along the Yucatan Peninsula, and the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) mangrove restoration projects in Baja California Sur. While some of these projects may not apply an accounting approach, each can provide a statistical foundation for ocean accounts.

While Mexico has a long history of incorporating ocean-related data (e.g., fisheries) next steps include expanding pilot work to ocean ecosystems to develop extent and condition classifications and to continue to engage non-profits at the subnational level to see which data types they are collecting that may be of value to ocean accounting.

3.2.3 Costa Rica

Costa Rica’s concerns related to managment of its ocean capital stem from ongoing signs in the coastal environment of overfishing, coastal runoff pollution (human and cattle waste management), and global climate change (ocean warming and sea level rise) and seeks to manage these issues by building off its history in environmental accounting. Costa Rica has a relatively long but intermittent history of environmental accounting beginning in 1991. In 2014, the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) adopted the SEEA Framework and began developing two separate accounts (Water and Land Cover/Forest) supported by the Wealth Accounting and the Valuation of Ecosystem Services (WAVES) partnership. Since the inception of the National Council for Environmental Accounts (NCEA; Under Ministry of Environment), environmental accounts have expanded to include Energy and CO2 emissions in 2016, and ecosystem accounts for carbon sequestration and pineapple crops in 2018.

The emphasis behind the creation of these accounts, as they relate to the management of Costa Rica’s ocean resources, is driven by a need for a more sustainable management of artisanal, commercial, and aquaculture fishery industries and to ensure continued provision of seafood for the population. These efforts were most recently supported by the release (Feb, 2019) of the Ocean Governance in Costa Rica report, which provides an overview on the legal and institutional framework in ocean affairs and will provide the structure for future spatial planning efforts related to ecosystem account building. National concerns related to the ocean (see 2019 governance report linked above) include decline in fish and invertebrate stocks, improper governance/zoning of fishing regions, climate change, and water pollution.

In addition to nationally directed pilot studies to advance ecosystem accounts, there are numerous sub-national ocean-related pilot studies lead by various non-profit groups, such as the the WAVES partnership, which facilitated development of environmental accounts from 2014 to 2019 (as part of a larger report on mainstreaming natural capital development in eight developing countries). As of 2019, declared Costa Rica “graduated” from the WAVES program. These initial works in terrestrial-based environmental accounting established a framework for the incorporation of other ecosystem-types and, following the International Conference: environmental accounts towards an inclusive blue economy in March of 2019, began the process to develop an aquatic resources account. This action created a technical group the support the NCEA in this process. Early works of this technical group include engagement with the commercial and artisanal fishery industries. Similarly, in 2019 the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) developed a toolkit which provides the framework to mainstream values of small scale fisheries in national accounts.

Moving forward, given the close focus on fisheries data, Costa Rica may have a “Fisheries Account” well before they have a total “Ocean Account”. However, Costa Rica’s 2019 ocean governance report provides invaluable framework to bootstrapping more ocean economy metrics outside fisheries. Ocean Accounts could be adopted as a common framework to begin compiling fisheries data while providing the flexibility to incorporate other, equally important, data-types later in time which are currently lagging in their organization and collection execution under the Costa Rican government.

3.2.4 Chile

Chile’s national concerns related to the ocean and it’s resources include overfishing, climate change and habitat loss, overexploitation of ocean-derived minerals and energy resources, and pollution from the energy industry. Chile released an environmental accounts plan in 2016 as part of the UN Advancing Natural Capital Accounting (ANCA) project. This plan is titled the SICAEE: Comprehensive System of Environmental, Ecosystem, and Economic Accounts (Spanish Acronym for SEEA). The emphasis behind the creation of these accounts, as they relate to the management of Chile’s ocean resources, stems from a national directive to place environmental quantification and statistics on ocean activities (fishing) and resources (minerals, water, energy) to further Chile as a leader among Latin American countries in green growth and sustainable development. Chile is also a High Level Panel (Ocean Panel) member for the Sustainable Ocean Economy.  

Under the currently adopted SEEA structure, there is no specific distinction of marine/ocean data from overall aquatic/water use classification. Presently, ocean data would be included under Ecosystem Assets: Water Resources and Fishing Resources. Information on these two classified assets (as it relates to the ocean) flows from both the Ministry of Environment (Dept. of Water Affairs and Ecosystems) and Ministry of Public Works (Dept. of Water Rights, Dept. of Water Emissions). Goals and objectives outlined in the most recent SICAEE identify the need to create an information technology system to integrate environmental information where the Ministry of Environment acts as a governance focal point. Specifically, achieving these goals is proposed in a 3-year plan (ending in 2021) divided into two parts: Promoting pilot environmental accounts (including ocean ecosystems) and developing a public communication system to relay the results of pilot studies and further engage citizens in the development of satellite environmental accounts. Initially listed pilot projects in the 2016 SICAEE do not include an ocean-specific project, however the framework developed by several of these initially proposed pilot projects in the in the categories of water quality and environmental protection expenditures will lend toward future necessary data-compilation structures for ocean-specific pilot accounts.

In addition to nationally directed work to advance ecosystem accounts, there are numerous ocean-related pilot studies lead by various non-profit groups or outside international organizations. These include five different case studies the UN Food and Agriculture Organization on Latina American rights-based fisheries, the OECD Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use in Latina America Report, and the UN Biodiversity Finance Initiative (Biofin).

Collectively, these efforts by the Chilean government and internationally supportive organizations have helped shape Chile’s 2030 National Biodiversity Strategy (in accordance specifically with the UN FAO National Biodiversity Strategy; see diagnostic for specific targets). Ocean Accounting can be presented as a tool to monitor and track progress toward achieving these targets while balancing environmental sustainability and economic viability.

3.2.5 United States of America

The US’s concerns related to ocean resource management include ocean pollution (plastics, pesticides, and other agricultural products), ocean acidification, overfishing, mismanagement of ocean resources (energy and minerals), sea level rise and other climate change impacts, increasing storm frequency, and population growth. Traditionally, the development of ocean accounting approaches to manage these issues has occurred in the academic sector but has recently gained practical application in government managed ocean satellite accounts.

 The US uses the SNA as a general accounting framework and has only recently begun testing the use of SEEA Ecosystems. Although the US has not formally adopted the SEEA, the US already provides substantial information on the economic activity related to the ocean in their national accounts. These data were first utilized in the academic sector rather than through national mandates for environmental accounting. Academic exercises conducted and published by Dr Colgan created the framework to compile national datasets which measure economic activity related to the oceans and great lakes of the US. These approaches were revisited more recently by Nicolls et al. (2020) and were the basis of the first nationally-directed projects that can be considered “ocean ecosystem accounts”.

Specifically, in 2019, these approaches were adopted by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) to create the Ocean Economy Satellite Account (OESA), who’s mandate is to develop prototype statistics to measure the ocean’s contribution to US GDP. The OESA is proposed to operate under and in harmony with the SNA but will differ in its arrangement of the data to provide defined ocean aspects of the economy. These prototype statistics collaboratively developed by BEA and NOAA provide the opportunity for stakeholders to help refine the methodology and approaches of ocean-related economic and environmental data gathering.

Thus far, OESA has begun pilot studies and data gathering divided among 10 subgroups. Moving forward, suggestions include expanding these categories to include more ocean sectors (e.g., Blue Technology), encouraging feedback to BEA by account users, and a goal by 2021 to develop web-based tools (i.e., online dashboarding) to begin to interpret and communicate data collected by the OESA. Additional priorities include the development of prototype statistics to value non-market sectors such as recreational activities and the environment, which will require the development of more pilot studies under the OESA in collaboration with the National Ocean Economics Program (NOEP). Although not officially a GOAP member at the national level, individuals developing the US-based ocean accounts are GOAP collaborators and it is expected their work will continue in parallel with that of GOAP members, providing channels to share progress.

The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) maintains a System of National Accounts based on the 1993 SNA (and has been updated more recently according to the 2008 SNA). Current challenges to advance toward environmental accounting practices mainly stem from Jamaica’s decentralised statistics system and the lack of coordination at the national level through the application of common standards. Jamaica has not adopted the SEEA but has made several efforts toward the valuation of marine natural capital, creation of blue economy satellite accounts, and joining the High Level Panel (Ocean Panel) for the Sustainable Ocean Economy over the last decade. These include efforts directed by the World Bank Group and other NGOs to valuate the marine capital and blue economy of the greater Caribbean Region and, more, recently (2019) at the national level by the Jamaican government (lead by STATIN).   At the Caribbean regional level, the World Bank Group 2016 “Toward a Blue Economy” report for sustainable growth in the Caribbean reported that the ocean economy represents more than 17% of the region GDP and identified that to sustain or increase this contribution the following issues need to be addressed: growing population, seafood demand, increased shipping traffic, coastal development, and land-based pollution. Five key strategies are proposed to enable this transition toward an economic policy framework to monitor and mitigate the issues presented above. These include 1) Improve statistical/methodological base for measuring the scale and performance of the ocean economy, 2) Apply marine spatial planning at the scale of EEZs, 3) Advance key infrastructure investments, 4) Track key blue economy indicators over time, 5) Repeat steps 1-4 to create a feedback loop for adaptation of practice and policy.   At the Jamaican national level, the Jamaican government has created satellite tourism and fisheries accounts, as these two industries have been identified as the main focal areas for developing a Blue Economy and contribute to 10% of GDP. Moving forward, priorities outlined by the STATIN includes further disaggregation of satellite accounts based on the following industries already outlined in Jamaica’s SNA which contribute to the Blue Economy: Fishing (Aquaculture + Fisheries), Transport (Storage + Communication), Arts/Recreation, and Manufacturing (Seafood Processing and Energy). Examples of specific case studies to advance these priorities and strategies include the mapping of coastal protection benefits of coral reefs and mangroves along the Jamaican coastline, lead my the Nature Conservancy and World Bank Group and the valuation of Jamaica’s coastal capital by the World Resources Institute. Building off of these initial case studies, the Caribbean Development Bank (CBD) reported in a recent 2019 study that the Blue Economy contributed to 7% of Jamaica’s GDP82 and projects a growth of 4.1% for the wider Caribbean region over the next year, consistent with accelerated global economic activity.   Moving forward, The 2019 CBD Report highlights that blue economy growth will remain lopsided toward energy, construction, tourism, and agricultural sectors and below sustainable rates needed for long-term resilience. Increasing the efficiency is presently limited by funding and will require collaboration of government, private industry, and academic research to advance the development of satellite accounts at the and use of input-output tables. It is strongly recommended that efforts to increase the capture and use of the ocean’s resources for economic gains are accompanied by improvements in the statistical system to monitor and evaluate the resulting impacts on national output and supply of other productive sectors. This does not imply pursuing new activities or industries but rather increasing the sustainability and efficiency of pre-existing marine-related industries. Once this is complete, then Jamaica can better estimate trade-offs associated with investing in new industries (e.g., marine renewable energy and marine aquaculture).   

3.3 Progress in Europe

3.3.1 European Union (EU) member states (overview)

There are several European Commission (EC) directives relevant to the marine space that direct member states to understand the stock and flows within their marine environments (as part of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030), maintain good environmental status of habitats (Marine Strategy Framework Directive, MSFD2008/56/EC) and create strategic plans for the marine space (Maritime Spatial Planning Directive, MSPD). The MSPD was implemented in the context of the 2012 ‘Blue Growth’ strategy[79], in focusing on the development of five sectors which may drive growth within the European marine domain. In support of blue growth initiatives, the EC releases annual reports on the scope and size of the blue economy across the European Union.

Given the expansion of traditional and novel activities within ocean space, the Maritime Spatial Planning Directive was formed to address conflicts between activities for space and resources and impacts (both discrete and cumulative) on the environment. The MSPD further requires an ecosystem-based approach to management, accounting for social, environmental, and economic considerations in decision-making. Such efforts require an understanding of the functioning of ecosystems and further, the relationships between the environment and society.

To recognise the contribution of nature to decision making, the European Commission has taken extensive efforts to gain a spatial understanding of the services ecosystems provide, including marine areas. A key policy objective within the EU’s Environmental Action Programme and EU Biodiversity Strategy to 2020 is the development of methodologies for natural capital accounting. To support this objective, the EC and Eurostat work jointly on the project, Integrated system of Natural Capital and ecosystem services Accounting in the EU (INCA), with deliverables aligned with UN standards within SEEA-EEA. The outcomes from INCA are expected to support the SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounts revision process, which aims to achieve an internationally agreed statistical standard for ecosystem accounting by 2020. Included within INCA is a pilot account for seagrass across Europe.

Further, under the EU's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, the Mapping and Assessment for Integrated ecosystem Accounting (MAIA) project was formed to promote the mainstreaming of natural capital accounting in EU Member States and Norway. A sister project, also funded by EU Horizon 2020, ‘We Value Nature’, works towards the mainstreaming of natural capital accounting in the private sector.

Regionally within Europe, there are several regional efforts to disaggregate and quantify the benefits associated with marine sectors. Within the Atlantic arc, the MOSES project examines the Blue Growth path for sustainable development of major sectors operating in the Atlantic. Similar efforts are ongoing within the Mediterranean and North seas, which host the Blue Growth Interreg-MED horizontal project and PERISCOPE project, respectively.

With regards to existing integrated policy and indicators, the European Statistical System, works to produce environmental accounts and makes progress each year. Annual data for six modules of the SEEA must be reported yearly to Eurostat, from 2017 onwards, as required by EU Regulation 538/2014. The modules cover Air emission accounts (14 pollutants), Energy accounts (natural resource input, energy products and residuals), Environmental taxes, Environmental protection expenditures, Environmental goods and services sector and Material flow accounts.

In the European Strategy for Environmental Accounts (2019-2023), water and waste accounts, as well as environmental subsidies, are modules prioritised for further development within the European Statistical System. There is increasing interest in the development of ocean accounts, as seen in the scan of priorities for European marine pilot accounts.

The European Union supports the development of Natural Capital approaches globally through the Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (NCAVES) Project, funding pilots accounts in Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa.

3.3.2 Portugal

Portugal’s priority actions for the sea include the sustainable and efficient use of ocean resources, in addition to other thematic domains such as competitiveness and internationalization, social inclusion and employment, and human capital.

Portugal’s National Ocean Strategy (ENM, 2013-2020), a component of the Portugal 2020 partnership agreement with the European Commission, calls for sustained growth, guided by the European Commission’s vision for ‘Blue Growth’. The strategic plan focuses on three ‘Action axes’, concerning innovation and research, exploration and use of ocean resources and the preservation of ocean environments. These actions encompass strategic goals, including understanding and monitoring resources and promoting and conserving the environment and marine biodiversity. For living resources, goals include promoting sustainable fishing, developing aquaculture in line with regional development and supporting the development of a marine biotechnology industry. Goals related to non-living resources include exploration of seabed mining and the developing offshore marine energy.

The Direção-Geral de Política do Mar do Ministério do Mar (DGPM) is responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of activities, whilst the Ministério da Agricultura e do Mar (MAM) is responsible for governance and administration, collaborating with other national departments, EU funding bodies and private investment. The monitoring and evaluation of plans is supported by several SEEA-compliant national accounts, led by Statistics Portugal. Portugal is an international leader in the implementation and maintenance of an ocean economy satellite account and is the model for many accounts under development.

Portugal maintains a complete set of production, expenditure, and income accounts able to produce a set of balanced national aggregates for the ocean economy. The ocean economy satellite account considers 65 different products and services, capturing traditional industries (ports, shipping, and fisheries), in addition to recreational, sports, culture and tourism-related activities. The country further maintains a tourism satellite account, which distinguishes the contribution of ocean-related products and services (including state spending on advertising and imputed rents from second homes on the coast) that contribute to the economy.

One of the challenges recognised by Portugal in implementing their strategic plan is the overlapping responsibilities of administrative departments and agencies, which limit the speed in implementation, transparency in decision making and accountability of monitoring and control efforts. This was addressed in part by Portugal's Law n. 17/2014/April 10, which established the legal basis for Portugal's policy on marine spatial planning and management of the national maritime space.

3.3.3 Netherlands

The Netherland’s priority actions for the Dutch North Sea include the conservation and recovery of marine ecosystems, promoting ‘blue growth’ opportunities, managing flood risk and improvement of water quality.

The Dutch area of the North Sea is one of the most intensely used marine areas in the world and home to Europe’s largest port. As in other North Sea coastal states, the Netherlands has emphasised the need for integrated spatial planning due to new uses requiring ocean space, such as offshore wind farms and marine protected areas. Further, considerable growth is forecasted for mineral extraction, water sport recreation, and possibly mariculture. The Dutch government is also concerned by the impacts of climate-change and sea level rise, which threaten its ports and coastal infrastructure. To combat greenhouse gas emissions, the Netherlands has committed to a ‘Green Deal’ to substantially reduce emission by the shipping sector, aiming for a 40% decrease by 2030.

The long-term vision of the North Sea 2050 Spatial Agenda, with 2021 policy targets outlined in the National Water Plan. There is a specific focus on energy transition, where the Netherlands aims to have space for operational capacity of 4,450 MW of wind energy at sea by 2023. There is also a focus on sustainable fisheries, in meeting commitments made to the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and balancing the requirement of shipping with emerging activities (e.g. marine protected areas, seabed mining and offshore wind farms). The Interdepartmental Directors’ Consultative Committee North Sea (IDON) led by the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management is the leading the development and implementation for plans of the North Sea.

To support integrated decision making, Statistics Netherlands released natural capital accounts of the North Sea, based on SEEA-EEA physical accounts. Ecosystem extents were based on water depth, water count stratification and sediment types. Condition accounts were informed by indicators of ‘Good Environmental Status’ (GES) defined by the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive. The Natural capital accounts further consisted of physical supply and use tables of selected biotic and abiotic ecosystem services relevant to the North Sea and Dutch continental shelf (marine fishing, extraction of sand and gravel, extraction of oil, provision of wind, provision of space and nature-related tourism and recreation). Ecosystem services related to recreation focused on beach tourism and coastal hiking, which were supported by Tourism Satellite accounts (Statistics Netherlands). 

For future works, Statistics Netherlands is considering the development of Monetary Supply and Use tables for marine ecosystem services, with terrestrial tables at national and regional scales produced in 2020.

3.3.4 France

France’s long-term strategy for its seas and coastlines involves four ‘complementary and inseparable’ objectives, namely ecological transition [towards sustainable development], development of a sustainable blue economy, good environmental status of the marine environment and France’s influence. Data from the maritime and coastal economy was estimated by Institut français de recherche pour l'exploitation de la mer  (IFREMER) in 2013 to support over 460,000 jobs and an added value of EUR 30 billion (1.5% of France's GDP), and further recognised the potential of maritime activities to stimulate further growth into the future.

In support of these priorities, France released the National Strategy for the Sea and Coast (Stratégie nationale pour la mer et le littoral, SNML) a reference document for the protection of marine environments and integrated management of the sea and coast. The SNML provides guidance and interpretation of the National Strategy for the Ecological Transition to Sustainable Development, the National Research Strategy and the National Biodiversity Strategy within the context of the sea and coastline. The authority responsible for marine spatial planning and the development of the blue economy is the Ministère de la Transition écologique (Ministry for the Ecological Transition).

The SNML emphasises the need to address pressures related to the impacts of climate change (including loss of biodiversity and increasing environmental health risks), urbanisation and coastal erosion, and their subsequent impacts on the economy and social wellbeing. To mitigate pressures and monitor the state of the environment, the SNML lists 26 priority actions, including defining relevant maritime policy monitoring indicators.

In support of indicator production, France has a developed ecosystem monitoring system, resulting from the Marine Strategy Framework and Water directives, although has yet to develop natural capital accounts. There are, however, ecosystem-related accounts, such as ecosystem carbon accounting (Forests), and assessment of environmental protection costs (since 1999).

L’Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (INSEE), the national statistics agency, oversees national accounts, whilst ministries’ statistical departments implement satellite accounts (environment, education and transport). However, INSEE performed a pilot study examining the contribution of the maritime economy to society. The report assessed the maritime economy of Provence-Alpes- Côte d'Azur (SE France), examining ocean-related sectors. The pilot identified maritime transport, ship-building and repair, and maritime-related computer engineering as essential components of the regional maritime economy (excluding public administration and fishing).

With regards to an accounting framework, the Ministry for Ecological Transition has committed to the maintenance of satellite accounts in line with SEEA. France currently maintains or is developing energy, land, subsoil assets, and non-cultivated bio and water resources. In addition, the ministry is exploring methods to and ecological damage (degradation) and its reparation. With regards to ecosystem services, current efforts are focused on reviewing ecosystem condition, associated ecosystem service values and developing valuation methodologies for decision support.

3.3.5 Norway

Norway’s ocean interests are related to value creation, clean and healthy oceans, and the sustainable use of ocean resources, as outlined by Norway’s Ocean Strategy New growth, Proud History (2017). A subsequent update of the Ocean Strategy in 2019 further emphasised Blue Opportunities, identifying future priorities in skills and digitalisation, climate change, and green shipping. More specifically, the Norwegian government has committed to protect blue vegetation and blue forests, form an action plan for green shipping to halve emissions by 2030, and Promote sustainability and blue economy as a key area of Norway’s Arctic policy.

To accomplish these strategic goals, the government has further committed to establish and maintain an integrated ecosystem-based management for ocean-based industries and contribute to international developments in sustainable ocean management. The implementation of Norway’s Ocean Strategy is decentralised, although the Ministry of Climate Change and the Environment coordinates the inter-ministerial Steering Committee for the Marine Spatial Plans of Norway’s seas (Barents Sea and Lofoten, Norwegian sea and North Sea), with revisions due in 2020.

A priority of Norway is the development of future-oriented ocean industries, considering established with emerging ocean industries, supporting growth through a regulatory framework and policy instruments. Sectors of interest include, inter alia, oil and gas, shipping, seafood, and tourism. To support the growth of these sectors, Statistics Norway is responsible for the composition of socio-economic information. Within the context of Norway, several sectors are exclusively marine, and disaggregation is unnecessary (e.g. mining and oil extraction). Therefore, data for many economic activities measured within the national accounts may be readily used towards ocean economy accounting. Further, Norway has a Tourism satellite account, although does not disaggregate ocean and land-based tourist activities.

Norway has a long history of environmental accounting towards sustainability. Norway’s priority in addressing climate change is focuses in part on ‘blue forests’, recognising that marine ecosystems play a key role in sequestering carbon. The Norwegian Government seeks to protect ‘blue’ vegetation to maintain carbon storage and safeguard marine biodiversity. A pilot study on Kelp environmental accounting was recently performed, detailing the loss of kelp between 1970 and 2010.

3.3.6 United Kingdom

The United Kingdom (UK), in recognising the importance of the environment and biodiversity to society and the economy, has committed to a net gain in healthy, well-functioning ecosystems and ecologically coherent protected area networks.

With the UK’s departure from the EU, several frameworks and policy reform have been implemented to navigate the departure from the previously established framework around marine environmental law and governance. These include the release of the UK Government's ‘A Green Future: Our 25 Year Plan to Improve the Environment (25YEP)’, the advent of a new UK Marine Strategy, a Fisheries Bill, and an Environment Bill, introduced to UK parliament in January 2020. The general ambition of the expected legislation is noted as ‘the improvement and restoration of the environment and better outcomes for fish stocks, ecosystem health, livelihoods, human health and wellbeing’. Of note, the key UK framework for marine management retains alignment with achieving ‘Good Environmental Status’ (GES) in marine habitats as defined in the European Commission’s Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

The achievement of GES is based on 15 themes, spanning 60 indicators, although these underlying indicators are not currently linked to the extensive efforts of environmental accounting performed within the UK. In support of achieving GES, integrated decision making and sustainable development within the marine space, the UK released the Marine Policy Statement, the policy framework for the marine planning system. It is implemented by the Marine Management Organisation, an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

Furthermore, the Office for National Statistics (ONS), in partnership with DEFRA, have advanced natural capital approaches within the UK, and its integration within the national accounting framework. The UK was the first to attempt a national-scale assessment of benefits transfer from nature to society and the economy. In 2011, the UK committed to the inclusion of natural capital within the UK Environmental Accounts and further established a Natural Capital Committee. In 2018, the UK government reaffirmed its commitment to the use of natural capital as a tool for long-term decisions in the 25 year Environment Plan. ONS published experimental ecosystem service accounts (for the period 1997–2015) in 2018, in addition to natural capital accounts for ecosystem services in 2019. These accounts are in the testing phase and continue to be developed, with ONS expanding the account to several other ecosystem services and improving methodologies on unresolved issues.

The UK’s natural capital accounts include marine examples through wild caught fish and recreation, although marine and coastal habitats were excluded from the carbon accounts. In terms of Ocean-related ecosystem accounts, the UK provided exploratory monetary accounts for carbon sequestration and recreation, fish (marine only), and sea defence and air quality regulation (coastal margin study only). Saltmarsh also featured in the marine scoping study, together with offshore sediments in two depth ranges, maerl beds, and a general marine category. The marine study also considered the role of the water column in terms of calculating the value of the North Sea carbon pump to carbon sequestration.

3.4 Progress in Africa

3.4.1 Africa: national overview

For countries in Africa, improving the quality of ocean governance and policy is critical to support existing and future efforts to sustainably manage the very diverse marine ecosystem, improve and sustain social well-being, as well as improving burden of ocean economy productivity and administrative requirements (Adewumi, 2020; Pigeon, 2020). While there are existing ocean governance and policy frameworks in Africa that have been criticized for being inadequate in attending to the 21-century maritime challenges (UNESCO/IOC, 2020), several policy frameworks are emerging at the national, sub-regional and regional level to ensure and stimulate sustainability, security, trade and investment as well as support inclusive growth and to raise living standards.

Given the high degree of collaboration between African nations in ocean economy related policy and governance, the overall discussion of ocean accounting related activities for the Africas region is organized by ocean economy sector as opposed to individual country. A series of individual country accounting projects are discussed in Section 3.4.9 below. Here, the review of Africa’s ocean governance systems and policies is based on the political science and international relations concept of governance architecture which allows for the comparative analysis of issue areas and policy domains (Biermann, Pattberg, van Asselt, & Zelli, 2009; Pattberg, Widerberg, Isailovic, & Guerra, 2014; Isailovic, Widerberg, & Pattberg, 2018). First, the review is structured into sections drawing on long-standing and new/emerging coastal and marine issue areas such as

• Food Production

• Industrialization and maritime trade

• Biodiversity Conservation

• Environmental Change

• Maritime Security

• Climate Change

• Pollution.

3.4.2 Africa’s international ocean policy commitments

Apart from the overarching global policy direction provided by the United Nations under the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS) and other associated regulatory frameworks,  Africa countries have taken steps to ensure high-level political support for ocean policy by assigning responsibility for promoting continent-wide progress on ocean sustainable management to the African Union (AU). This supports improvements in ocean regulatory policy and guarantees its consistent implementation over time (UNECA, 2016; IOC/UNESCO, 2017). The 2050 Africa Integrated Maritime Strategy (2050 AIMS) adopted in 2014 by African Heads of States and Government of the African Union (AU) is an overarching continental-wide policy document that provides a broad framework to address contending, emerging and future maritime challenges and opportunities in Africa, with a clear focus on enhanced wealth creation from sustainable governance of Africa’s inland waters, oceans and seas.

This document includes a Plan of Action for its operationalization with, clearly defined vision with achievable goals, including specific desirable objectives, activities, and milestones towards attaining environmental protection, economic prosperity, and social security. Major issues of interest within the 2050 AIMS bothers on building consensus around a shared maritime vision, maritime sectors development to address structural causes of poverty, advocacy for the rule of law, good governance and human security, research, innovation and development, etc. However, implementing the 2050 AIMS is said to be marred by ineffective coordination, inadequate understanding of its central concept of Blue Economy, lack of legal backing and burden rising from disproportionate operational planning of its Action Plan (Walker, 2017; Egede, 2018; Adewumi, 2020).  

The vision of 2050 AIMS was embedded in the AU Agenda 2063 “the future we want”, a document adopted by Heads of State and Governments of the AU in 2015. This high-level document acknowledges the major role blue economy can play in Africa's structural transformation, sustainable economic progress, and social development. “Blue/ocean economy for accelerated economic growth” is recognised to fulfil the agenda’s aspiration of a “prosperous Africa, based on inclusive growth and sustainable development”.

In this direction, an important document called the Africa Blue Economy Strategy was launched in February 2020 with five annexes, reinforcing the commitments of African countries towards meeting the SDG targets, particularly SDG14, the vision of Agenda 2063 and to accelerate the implementation of AU policies and instruments such as the AU 2050 Africa Integrated Maritime Strategy, the AU-Lomé Charter on Maritime Security, Safety and Development, and the Revised African Maritime Transport Charter.

At the sub-regional level, several integrated policy frameworks and high-level decision statements are in place to enable effective management and use of marine resources and ecosystem. Member States of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) adopted the ECOWAS Integrated Maritime Strategy (EIMS) in 2014 in alignment with the AU 2050 AMIS, similar initiatives in neighbouring regions, such as ECCAS (ECOWAS, 2015). The EIMS envisions a prosperous, safe, and peaceful ECOWAS maritime domain that enables environmentally sustainable development and wealth creation based on efficient management and good governance. It is a robust framework that identifies the critical challenges to the maritime domain and proffers a set of comprehensive priority actions that should be undertaken at the national and regional level. The EMIS addresses five strategic objectives focused on strengthening maritime governance, maritime security and safety, maritime environmental management, optimising the ECOWAS maritime economy, and promoting maritime awareness and research. This policy framework is based on a holistic people-centric approach to the management and exploitation of the maritime domain and emphasises the importance of inter-agency collaboration at the national, bilateral and multilateral to coordinate and synergise their activities and responses within the maritime domain. Also, it provides a firm basis for the development of a regional trans-boundary strategy addressing several maritime challenges including IUU (Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated) fishing, maritime security and safety, extractive activities, protection of the natural environment, and co-operation in the event of natural disasters.

Similarly, Contracting Parties to the Nairobi Convention agreed on fifteen important decisions in 2015 during the Eighth Conference of the Parties to the Convention to foster the management and governance of the maritime domain within its jurisdiction. Amongst these decisions are those agreed to accelerate sub-regional uptake of Area-based Management frameworks including MSP, ICZM, etc (UNEP-Nairobi Convention, 2015). Decision CP8/3: Development of a Protocol on Integrated Coastal Zone Management, advocated for the review of the draft Protocol on Integrated Coastal Zone Management by Contracting Parties to explore other possible options for the effective management of marine and coastal environment.  To foster blue economy development, Decision CP8/10: Blue and Ocean Economy (4) is predicated on the utilities of “… marine spatial planning to promote the blue economy pathways in the Western Indian Ocean Region”. Also, Decision CP8/13: Enhancing Cooperation, Collaboration and Support with Partners (3) recognised economy approaches as pathways for sustainable development in the region and emphasised the need for “…capacity building, implementation and sharing of experiences on integrated marine spatial planning in support of the blue economy.”3.4.3 Maritime transportation, security, and safety

Following global trends, maritime transportation and trade policies in Africa have largely developed and evolved on a sectoral basis and are not well suited to work effectively across sectors. Three are sectoral policies in Africa that are suited to manifest sine qua non to the AU 2050 AIMS and Agenda 2063, but not yet systematically used to inform the development of ocean regulations in practice. One of such policies is the AU Lomé Charter on Maritime Security, Safety and Development also known as the Lomé Charter adopted by heads of state and government in 2016. The  Lomé Charter, which is organised into seven chapters, 56 articles and draft Annexes, proposes a coordinated action between the countries of Africa to promote sustainable exploitation of marine resources (Article 14), combat maritime crimes (piracy, trafficking in drugs, arms, and human beings, IUU Fishing, etc) (Articles 16 and 17); enhance maritime safety of ships and crews (Article 18), etc (AU, 2016). Sustainable maritime governance and management feature critically in chapter three the Lomé Charter, with its chapter four is dedicated to the development of Africa's Blue Economy and reinforcing several provisions of the 2050 AIMS. As promising and forward-looking this chatter is, implementation of the charter’s provisions has been unsatisfactory. After its adoption in 2016, the chatter has only being signed by ratified by Benin and Togo out of 35 signatory countries (AU, 2020a). Several external reasons have been attributed to the lukewarm implementation of the Lomé Charter such as bureaucracy, low level of maritime awareness, inadequate platforms and a low level of maritime domain awareness, lack of programmatic activities with a strategic roadmap and timelines  (Oladipo, 2017; Egede, 2020). Also, the chatter has been faulted for being more of a wish list and not legally-binding, overly focussed on security and fishing, much emphasis on restriction rather than development, lacklustre texting, slow finalization of the draft Annexes, and insufficient appreciation of the complex connection of maritime challenges occurring in the African waters (Otto, 2017; Brits & Nel, 2018). 

Before the Lomé Charter, based on an original revision of the 1993 African Maritime Transport Charter, the AU heads of state had in 2010 endorsed the “African Union Maritime Transport Charter” and the “Maritime Transport Plan of Action”. Both documents are offshoots of the 2009 “Durban Resolution on Maritime Safety, Maritime Security, and Protection of the Marine Environment” With fifteen chapters and 54 articles, the Charter aims to promote cooperation between States parties, regional and international organizations on maritime transport, inland waterways navigation, ports and related activities (AU, 2010). The Chatter professes to address a wide range of pressing issues related to the growth and development of African merchant fleets; reform and efficiency in port operations; expansion of information systems; the establishment of regional or national maritime funds for the development of maritime industry,  modernization and harmonization of maritime laws across subregions; maritime regulations expansion; counter-piracy and armed robbery at sea, etc (AU, 2010). The accompanying expired  Plan of Action (2009 – 2012) identifies seven objectives and a long list of sub-objectives that concerns measures (institutional and legal measures); capacity building; strengthening of maritime safety and security; enhancement of port performance; facilitation and financing of maritime transport and ports; etc. (AU, 2009). However, the implementation of this Charter has been slow with only 24 ratifications, excluding important maritime States like Democratic Rep. of Congo, Madagascar, Nigeria, Mauritius, Seychelles, and Somalia (AU, 2020b). Both the Charter and its Plan of Action has been considered weak as they lack authority, coordination, political buy-in, inclusivity, enforcement mechanisms and support of the African Union’s leaders which all-in-all questions its legitimacy (Baker, 2011). Baker also noted that the Charter failed to address issues such as illicit trafficking at sea, IUU Fishing and the poor state of port infrastructures.

At the Sub-regional level, there are other policy instruments directed towards stronger trans-boundary and inter-regional cooperation in combating piracy and other incidents of maritime insecurity. In response to the incessant piracy attacks in the Gulf of Aden and the Western Indian Ocean and pursuant to four Nations Security Council (UNSC)  resolutions, 1816, 1838, 1846, and 1851 in 2008 (UN, 2008a; UN, 2008b; UN, 2008c; UN, 2008d) and one resolution 1897 in 2009 (UN, 2009),  the Djibouti Code of Conduct concerning the Repression of Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden (also known as the Djibouti Code of Conduct (CoC) was led by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and adopted in 2009  by 21 countries including Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Seychelles, Somalia, the United Republic of Tanzania, Yemen, Comoros, Egypt, Eritrea, Jordan, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates (IMO, 2014). The Djibouti CoC aims to facilitate transnational communication, coordination, and cooperation in four thematic areas of delivering national and regional training, enhancing national legislation, information sharing and building counter-piracy capacity. However, the “Jeddah Amendment to the Djibouti Code of Conduct 2017” has significantly broadened the scope of the code to include the recognition of the important role of the Blue Economy and illegal maritime activities such as IUU fishing and human trafficking (IMO, 2017). Support from IMO to the Member States to implement the Djibouti CoC is still ongoing through activities funded by the Djibouti Code Trust Fund and the Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (ITCP)  with Project Implementation Unit based in Nairobi, Kenya (IMO, 2020). Current and envisaged challenges to Djibouti CoC included the fact that it tells on the national sovereignty of smaller states as stronger nations both among signatory States and with navies from countries outside the region has since embarked on building military bases in the weaker states. Likewise, the disproportionate capacity of Member States to implement the code is a serious loophole in terms of monitoring and enforcement. Also, the future of the Djibouti CoC is not guaranteed, as the continuous support of the Trust Fund Donors is not certain.

Similarly to the Djibouti CoC, the Yaounde Code of Conduct and Maritime Insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea also known as the Yaoundé Code of Conduct (CoC) is an instrument developed by the  Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the Gulf of Guinea Commission with the assistance of IMO as a strategic approach to curb piracy, IUU fishing, and other illegal activities (IMO, 2013a; Ifesinachi, K.; Nwangwu, 2015). The Yaoundé  CoC was initiated in pursuant to UNSC resolutions 2018 of 2011 and 2039 of 2012 (UN, 2011; UN, 2012) and signed in 2013 by 25 West and Central African countries committing them to cooperate in the repression of illicit and organized transboundary maritime crime, maritime terrorism, IUU fishing, and other illegal activities in the area (IMO, 2013b). This 15-paged 21 Articles Code of Conduct recognised the African Union Commission as its depository through Article 20 (2) and (4) making it an integral part of the AU’s commitment toward the governance of Africa’s maritime domain. Nevertheless, it is believed that the Yaoundé  CoC has not considered any long-term measure aimed at the reduction of piracy and armed robbery at sea because it did not expressly specify measures to address the salient root causes maritime insecurity in the region including bad governance, poverty and unemployment. It is pertinent to note that the Yaoundé CoC also inspired the Yaoundé Architecture for Maritime Security and Safety (YAMSS). YAMSS is based on the idea of information sharing, coordination of actions as well as strengthening laws and closing down areas of vulnerability (ADF, 2020), and conceptualized the division of coastal space in the Gulf of Guinea into 5 operational maritime zones where activities are coordinated by five Maritime Multinational Coordination Centres (MMCC). Under YAMSS, attendant regional maritime governance mechanisms have either being created or in the pipeline including the Interregional Coordination Centre (ICC), the coordination and information-sharing structure which connects the Regional Maritime Security Centre for Central Africa (CRESMAC) and the Regional Maritime Security Centre for West Africa (CRESMAO) (GoGIN, 2020).

Concerned about rising menace of IUU fishing in the Southern African maritime domain,  eight coastal countries from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in 2008 adopted the Southern African Development Community Statement on IUU Fishing which identified four priority areas requiring urgent attention including improving regional and inter-regional cooperation with a view to eradication IUU fishing, strengthening fisheries governance and legal frameworks to eliminate illegal fishing, developing a regional monitoring, control, and surveillance (MCS) strategy and a regional plan of action in relations to IUU fishing, and Strengthening fisheries MCS capacity (SADC, 2008). Clear measures to address issues within these priority areas has been spelt out with revolves around developing national and regional port State measures, implementation of a progressive ban on transhipment of fish at sea, and commitment to penalize culprit vessels caught with illegal catches (SADC, 2008). Though nothing had been head about the progress of this statement, recent reports indicate that coastal countries in the SADC are drawing up a plan of action on monitoring, control, and surveillance aimed at countering illicit activities such as illegal fish landings, transhipment at sea, violations of catch limits, and deployment of illegal equipment in marine and inland water waters (Oirere, 2020).

With a membership of 16 coastal Sates in West and Central Africa, the Maritime Organization of West and Central Africa (MOWCA), though, initially dealt mainly with maritime transport issues (Blede, 2002), it has over the years developed few maritime safety and security policies. Amongst this polices is the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Establishment of a Sub-regional Integrated Coast Guard Network in West and Central Africa also known as the  IMO/MOWCA MoU was adopted in 2008 by with 14 Member States: Benin, Cameroon, Cape Verde, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo. Within its agreement, four operational patrol zones, spanning from Mauritania to Angola was established. Part six of this MoU is of particular interest as it laid down the framework to promote regional maritime cooperation, safety, law and order and surveillance for peace and prosperity of West and Central Africa (IMO/MOWCA, 2008).

Several high-level political efforts have been initiated in the Western and Southern Indian Ocean based on a mechanism for the exchange and sharing of maritime information and a mechanism for the coordination of joint actions at sea. In 2010, a Regional Strategy against Piracy and for Maritime Security in Eastern and Southern Africa and the Indian Ocean emerged from the 7^th of October 2010 second Regional Ministerial Meeting on Piracy and Maritime Security in Mauritius. A complementing Regional Plan of Action” to the Strategy was also released. Baker (2011) described the emergence of these two documents as “the best example of a comprehensive regional effort to tie functional areas of maritime security to strategic ends.” Recently, the Indian Ocean Commission under the MASE Programme had facilitated two regional Agreements to foster efficient maritime security and safety framework. One of those agreements is the Agreements to establish an effective and appropriate regional maritime security architecture signed by the Union of Comoros, Djibouti, Madagascar, Mauritius and Seychelles (IOC, 2019). The agreement also established the Regional Maritime Information Fusion Centre based in Madagascar and the Regional Operational Coordination Centre based in Seychelles as the operational mechanisms for its effective implementation (IOC, 2019). 

3.4.4 Agriculture policy and regulatory frameworks with fisheries components

The Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) is a Pan-Africa approach that offers a broad frame of priorities from which more precise strategies and programmes related to food security, poverty reduction, peace, etc. can be derived for operationalisation (NEPAD, 2003). Developed in 2003 by the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), this comprehensive document includes clear principles based on inclusiveness, subsidiarity and complementarity, partnership, mutual accountability, peer review mechanisms. CAADP is in no small measure, a converging point for regional, sub-regional and national fisheries-related policy harmonization, coordination and coherence,  its scope includes different sectoral areas such as trade, agricultural productivity, natural resources management, etc. The CAADP implementation frameworks including the sub-regional and national compacts, food security plans, multi-annual investment plans process are capable of promoting a multi-stakeholder participatory approach, transparency and accountability, tools that are necessary for efficient monitoring and implementation.

While relevant fisheries dimensions did not feature sufficiently in the CAADP’s initial framework, a supplementary document to the CAADP was release in 2006 called the Companion Document which integrates fisheries and aquaculture subsectors into the CAADP. This document covers diverse fisheries development issues that bother on the sustenance of production from capture fisheries, acceleration of aquaculture growth, markets and trends expansion, and small-scale sector value and benefits (NEPAD, 2006). It identified immediate, short medium-term and future scenarios to achieve for fisheries in Africa structured around six key areas including (i) human and institutional capacity; (ii) management tools and implementation; (iii) sustaining and increasing production; (iv) developing and adding value; (v) sharing benefits; and (vi) learning and exchanging knowledge.

Another document that has been developed to aid the realization of the CAADP is the Malabo guidelines on agricultural transformation otherwise known as the Malabo Declaration adopted in 2014. The Malabo Declaration is specifically directed at accelerating the achievement of the growth and transformation vision enshrined in the CAADP by 2025. With the current call for increased engagement of the private sectors in fisheries to drive innovation and help address certain social welfare and food security issues (e.g, entrepreneurship, nutrition, etc), the Malabo Declaration comes handy as it is committed to the integration of innovative funding mechanisms and private sector engagement in fisheries development on the continent with a focus on i) Effective inputs supply systems ii) Innovative lending programs for farmers iii) Building strong value chains for fisheries. The continuous commitment of the Malabo Declaration to measure, monitor and publish its implementation progress can also help gain private sector investment/trust and attract political buy-in.

The flexibility and deepening regional integration of the CAADP process at the Regional Economic Community (REC) level has led to agricultural policies being developed with several objectives and planned activities intersecting with fisheries and aquaculture development. An example can be taken from the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) CAADP Regional Compact which acknowledges the importance of fisheries and its value-chains to the economy and livelihoods in the region. Under its pillar 1 (Land and Water) and the priority for food systems productivity,  projects focusing on 1) Fisheries and Climate Change Adaptation; 2) Acceleration and expansion of sustainable aquaculture; 3) Enhancing Regional Trade and Fisheries Products have been outlined for implementation (FANRPAN, 2010). Also, Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) Regional Agricultural Investment Plan and Food & Nutrition Security (RAIPFNS) and 2025 Strategic Policy Framework are a policy framework adopted in 2016 to implement the ECOWAS Agriculture & Environment Programme in alignment with CAADP priorities (ECOWAS, 2017b). For example, is a high level of commitment in the RAIPFNS to ensuring a fisheries sector that is modern, competitive, inclusive, and sustainable, to accelerate economic prosperity, guarantee decent jobs, and ensure food security. The 2016-2020 implementation focus of the 2025 Strategic Framework has its first and third objective focused on increasing fisheries productivity and production through diversified and sustainable production systems and evaluation of the impacts of border trade policy for fishery products (see SO1 and SO3) and contribute to its readjustment where necessary (ECOWAS, 2017a). It planed to achieve these through activities that “promote responsible maritime and continental fisheries and aquaculture development and three actions (adoption of a regional policy for the fisheries and aquaculture sub-sector ensuring the preservation of resources, definition, adoption and implementation of a regional action plan) with expected result of an increased fisheries productivity, production systems and techniques that are adapted to climate change and, improved and sustainable management of fisheries exploitation.

3.4.5 Promoting fisheries and aquaculture production

In addition to agricultural policies with fisheries intersection, there are purpose-built fisheries policies that are fit to the specific context of a sub-region or the African continent as a whole, reflecting on how to better address myriad of challenges in the fisheries and aquaculture sector. At the regional level, several of the policy frameworks have come as part of the intervention provided by NEPAD. The NEPAD Action Plan for the Development of African Fisheries and Aquaculture, for example, describes investment areas for coastal and marine fisheries, and aquaculture (NEPAD, 2005). Specifically, the Action Plan embraces a holistic approach to solving fisheries and aquaculture challenges in Africa, advocating for the development of sector-wide strategies using economic planning approaches and a comprehensive value-chain perspective. For instance, it highlighted four pressing challenges for coastal and marine fisheries context (including Improved Productivity, Environmental Sustainability, Market Development and Trade, and Food Security and Nutrition) and identified eight investment areas with corresponding priority action points. For example, referring to the environmental sustainability challenges, investment in the improvement and management of the coastal and marine environment is said to be critical in achieving future investments in coastal and marine fisheries and needs to be supported by investments integrated planning approaches that embrace the interactions within small-scale and larger-scale fisheries sector and other domains impacting the resources. With this, developing and implementing integrated coastal zone management plans (including the use of MPAs) amongst others was identified as a priority action point. Likewise, the Plan of Action acknowledged grey areas in Africa’s aquaculture development including issues of improved productivity, environmental sustainability market development and trade, and food security and nutrition. Just like in coastal and marine fisheries, the Plan of Action listed need for private sector investment, sector-wide strategies at the national level, support for priority aquaculture zones and the use of proven technologies as important investment areas to improve aquaculture production in Africa. However, no provision was made for mariculture and offshore fish farming in this Plan of Action.

Also, the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa  (PFRS) is the first continental policy document in Africa adopted in 2014 by the AU in partnership with NEPAD to creating a conducive and enabling environment for the fish sector to create equitable, social and economic development in Africa (AU/NEPAD, 2014). This document is a combination of the Comprehensive African Fisheries Reform Strategy (CAFRS) and the Pan-African Fisheries Policy Framework (APFS) which provided the six guiding principle for the CAFRS in the emphasis on wealth and social welfare creation, food security and regional collaboration. The broad-based nature of the resulting  PFRSFA provides an opportunity to strengthen vertical and horizontal coherence, as provides structured guidance on how fisheries management agencies and other stakeholders can facilitate reforms toward coherent national and regional policies. In contrast to the CAADP and ancillary frameworks, PFRSFA acknowledges the diversity of uses of fish resources and advocates a broad, inclusive approach to fisheries management and aquaculture development. However, it supports the intents of the 2014 Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods. With PFRS’s eye on small-scale fisheries and aquaculture, the largest fisheries sector in Africa, development, wealth-generating potential, sustainable social, environmental, and profitable outcomes for Africa and its people will be ensured. Priority actions with clear milestones, indicators to measure progress and impact, and responsibilities of stakeholders have been established within a supplementary document developed to strengthen and fast track the PFRS implementation at national and regional levels (AU, 2015). The provisions of the PFRS will enable African governments to develop an appropriate mechanism for rational utilisation of fisheries resources and sustainable aquaculture development, with accompanying fiscal reforms resulting in viable benefits at the community level and wealth creation along its value chain.  Because this policy is not legally binding, therefore, its success depends on Africa’s governments as their dedication and effort in ensuring that the PFRS is implemented will determine its positive impact on the continent. Also, the PFRS’s implementation guild does not address Small Island African States (SIDs) which will limit its success across the board as fisheries and aquaculture are critically important to the development of SIDs in the face of global recession and climate change.

The  NEPAD Agency Fisheries and Aquaculture Programme was established in 2009 to maximise the contribution of fisheries and aquaculture to food and nutrition security in Africa (NEPAD, 2015). Building on its achievement, a 2015-2020 programme based on a Theory of Change methodology which builds on the PFRSFA, to aid the implementation of CAADP and the Rural Futures Programme from improved fisheries and aquaculture sector perspective was designed (NEPAD, 2015). It focuses on reforms in economic policies and institutional capabilities by identifying salient problems hindering fisheries and aquaculture development in African with corresponding responses including knowledge generation, linking policy to practice, and communication and advocacy

At the sub-regional level, similar plans are also being implemented in partnership with NEPAD and other regional and international partners. For example, the SADC Fisheries Programme (2015-2020) which was derived from the implementation strategy of the SADC Protocol on Fisheries focuses on three pillars: management of shared fisheries, combating illegal, unreported & unregulated (IUU) fishing, small-scale & artisanal fisheries, and fish trade. It includes 25 current initiatives supporting regional participation and strategic development in the aquaculture sector, regional fisheries management,  capacity building, information coordination and sharing, and fisheries value chain improvement (SADC, 2015).

3.4.6 Policies for natural resources sustainability

Regular features and objectives of several policies on environmental management and governance in African and the sub-regions are an important guiding framework for the conservation and management of marine biodiversity. For example, the 2015 Cairo Declaration on Managing Africa’s Natural Capital for Sustainable Development and Poverty Eradication indicates a high ambition by African countries to optimize the use of the continent’s abundant natural resources for sustainable development and poverty alleviation. The Declaration is a reaffirmation of the vital role that Africa’s natural capital plays in underpinning sustainable and resilient development on the continent. This declaration serves as a means to step up regional and national efforts to consider ocean capital valuation in national planning/financing and decision-making to harness the full potential of Africa's rich endowments and to employ the competitive advantage offered as an engine for inclusive economic growth. It craves African countries’ agreement to support activities on marine ecosystems, the development of marine spatial planning and area-based planning, marine protected areas and valuation and natural capital accounting tools in collaboration with regional and international organisations (AMCEN, 2015). In addition to addressing natural capital, the declaration also covers a wide range of priorities for African countries, including climate change, gender equality, illegal wildlife trade, the integration of the inclusive green economy across sectors (AMCEN, 2015).

Before the Cairo Declaration, was the Gaborone Declaration for Sustainability in Africa (GDSA) initiated in 2012 and entered into force in 2016 to ensure that the contributions of natural capital to sustainable economic growth, maintenance and improvement of social capital and human well-being are quantified and integrated into development and business practice. Made up of 14 Member States, the GDSA  is an integrated policy that cuts across sectors and aims to achieve sustainability by integrating the values and contributions of nature into decision making for the benefit of the African people. The GDSA is a transformative framework and a commitment to a new model of development that, for the first time, takes into account the role of natural capital in development by bringing the value of natural resources to the centre of environmental, social and economic decision-making. The GDSA catalyzes and cultivates partnerships across sectors to bring resources, knowledge and capacity together for maximum impact and the collaboration of a wide range of sectors and stakeholders.

The Revised African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources also called the Maputo Convention was adopted by the Heads of State and Government of the African Union in 2003 is a revised version of the 1968 African Convention on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources. The Maputo Convention appears to be the most comprehensive and modern regional treaty on the environment and natural resources conservation as it deals with an array of sustainable development matters including quantitative and qualitative management of natural resources. The main objectives of the convention are to encourage conservation, utilisation and development of soil, water, flora and fauna for the present and future welfare of mankind, from an economic, nutritional, scientific, educational, cultural and aesthetic point of view (African Union, 2017). It encourages transboundary cooperation whenever this desirable for the implementation of the Convention and proposed the establishment of an independent secretariat through the Convention’s first Conference of Parties to perform administrative, coordination and implementation functions. However, after 14 years of its adoption, the first Conference of the Parties, essential to operationalizing is yet to be held (IUCN, 2018), and only has 44 signatories, 17 ratifications excluding many SIDs and large ocean countries (AU, 2019).

At the sub-regional level, there are also integrated environmental policies that are indirectly and directly important to the management of marine and coastal environment. The Maghrebian Charter for the Protection of the Environment and Sustainable Development adopted in 1992 by the Heads of Government of  (AMU) is aimed at adopting development policies that establish the dimension environmental to avoid disruption of natural balances (AMU, 1992). Chapter 2, section five of the Chatter is dedicated to the protection of the coastline and the marine environment, acknowledging the importance of maritime resources in the development process economy of the AMU countries and the extreme sensitivity of the marine environment to factors such as degradation and pollution (AMU, 1992). The Charter commits AMU countries to take the necessary measures, in particular those of a legislative nature, for the protection of the coastline from the effects of erosion and pollution and to strengthen preventive measures for the protection of maritime resources within Maghrebi territorial waters while strengthening the control and coordination provision for this purpose.

The East Africa  Community (EAC) has developed a Protocol on Environment and Natural Resources Management which was signed in 2006. The Protocol aims to promote and enhance cooperation in the management of environmental and natural resources amongst the Partner States. The areas covered by the Protocol include; biodiversity, land, forests, wildlife, water, wetlands, coastal and marine, fisheries, mineral, energy, tourism, mountainous and genetic resources, climate change, desertification and droughts, depletion of the ozone layer, biosafety and biotechnology, hazardous waste chemical and pollution control and environmental disaster preparedness and management.

3.4.7 Climate Change policies relevant for coastal and marine management

The impact of climate change on the ocean and marine environment poses major challenges to social and economic conditions in Africa (UNESCO/IOC, 2020). However, there are existing policy efforts at regional and sub-regional levels that are relevant to cater for the effect of climate change on African ocean and coasts.

The Draft African Union Strategy on Climate Change was submitted to the 4th extraordinary session of the African Ministerial Conference on Environment in Bamako, Mali in September 2011. The Vision of the African strategy is to provide the AU as a whole, the RECs, Member States and other stakeholders with a reliable source of strategic guidance to enable them effectively address climate change challenges (AU, 2014). Cross-cutting issues within the strategy are underpinned by four thematic areas, namely: climate change governance; promoting research, education, awareness and advocacy; mainstreaming and integrating climate change imperatives in planning, budgeting and development processes; and promoting national and regional cooperation (AU, 2014). Within the strategy, frameworks for strategic goals and actions have been proposed, and of particular relevance to Africa’s marine domain is framework XI.15 on coastal and marine resources focusing on options for increasing coastal and climate resilience that can be implemented at the regional, national, community and ecosystem levels, in collaboration with local and international stakeholders. It identified the need to strengthen resilience to climate change in coastal areas (Goal 27) through five actions that include (AU, 2014):  reviewing the status of the implementation of existing ICZM to promote climate-resilient development in the coastal and marine environments; providing guidance in the development of a framework for the assessment of current and projected climate risks including marine and coastal zone hazards such as the coastal area flooding, storm surges, sea-level rise; cyclones, tsunamis, and associated impacts on society, tourism, fisheries, infrastructure and livelihoods, enhancing R&D, education, training and awareness in aspects relevant to climate change impacts and responses to marine and coastal zone related disasters, developing fisheries management approaches that incorporate resilience-enhancing practices, and ensuring that development of aquaculture initiatives have attributes that enhance their resilience to impacts of climate change.

From a rather untraditional source, the African Development Bank (AfDB) In 2009, developed its Strategy of Climate Risk Management and Adaptation (CRMA) to help the continent cope with climate change. This strategy calls for increased support in three intervention areas including climate-proofing investments, policy, legal and regulatory reforms (including fishery sector regulation), and capacity building of African countries to tackle climate change risks (AfDB, 2009). To implement the CRMA, actions and interventions are spelt out in a comprehensive action plan known as the African Development Bank Group’s Second Climate Change Action Plan (2016–2020). The purpose of the plan is to reduce the continent's vulnerability to climate change, including investment in coastal protection projects and the design and implementation of regional programmes to build the resilience of African coastal zones (AfDB, 2015).

Various RECs have also developed climate change policies and strategies with specific objectives and actions to improve the management of the coastal and marine ecosystem. For instance, the East African Community Climate Change Policy developed in 2006. The policy set targets and goals for sustainable development in the region to contribute to sustainable development in the region through harmonized and coordinated regional strategies, programmes and actions to address Climate Change (EAC, 2006). Within this policy, there is a specific objective on the coastal and marine ecosystem to “enhance the adaptive capacity and resilience of the coastal and marine ecosystems, coastal communities and infrastructure to the impacts of climate change as part of ecosystem-based adaptation” (EAC, 2006). Several policy statement and actions in line with this objective urge EAC’s Partner States to promote ICZM, support measures to control coastal erosion as a result of rising seawater; mobilize funds to construct walls at vulnerable points to minimize adverse impacts of sea-level rise, conserve coastal and marine habitats to promote the development of protected area management systems; and establish coastal ecosystem monitoring and surveillance systems. Besides the  EAC Climate Change Strategy (2011-2015) that was developed to guide the implementation of the EAC Climate Change Policy in the medium term (EAC, 2011b), a regional Climate Change Master Plan has also been developed which serves as regional blueprint to guide regional climate change response measures in the long term (EAC, 2011a).

3.4.8 Policy frameworks for inclusive and responsible tourism

The abundance of rich and cultural heritage, pristine land/seascape as well and flora and fauna biodiversity increase Africa’s potential as a tourism destination of choice. In 2019 alone, Africa hosted 67 million tourists and generated almost USD 38 billion in return (UNWTO, 2020). Aware of African Tourism potentials, the AU developed a continent-wide programmatic framework in the tourism sector in 2004  through the NEPAD Tourism Action Plan (TAP) to foster an economy of scale; regional integration; and shared development costs, especially in infrastructure and marketing. The TAP is mainly focused on six key areas including policies and regulatory environment, institutional capacity, marketing, research and development, investment in tourism infrastructure and products, and human resources and quality assurance. Likewise, the African Tourism Strategic Framework (ATSF) 2019-2028 has been endorsed in 2019 by the Second Ordinary Session of the Specialized Technical Committee on Transport, Intercontinental and Interregional Infrastructures, Energy and Tourism in April 2019, in line with the AU Agenda 2063 flagship of “making Africa the preferred destination for tourism” and the requisite need for a continental tourism development framework as affirmed by the First Ten-Year Implementation Plan of the Agenda 2063, the Seychelles Communiqué 2014, the 2017 Lomé Ministerial Declaration, and the Plan of Action for Tourism (2017-2019). The Tourism Strategic Framework 2019-2028 seeks to provide strategic action plan geared towards the development of a competitive, sustainable and integrated tourism industry in Africa with attention to economic transformation and continental integration, competitive tourism industry, sustainability principles, skills training and entrepreneurship development, broad-based partnership, gender and inter-generational inclusivity and institutional coordinator. The supervision of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the ATSF is specified to be undertaken at three levels: Continental level, Regional Economic Commissions (RECs) and national level, where each Member States will be responsible for the implementation of various national–level Strategic Programmes. The ATSF does do not make specific emphasis on coastal and marine tourism.

3.4.9 Existing accounting projects

National River Ecosystem Accounts for South Africa

This project is one of seven pilot projects under the Advancing SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting global initiative led by the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme. South Africa participated in the First Phase of this initiative which took place from mid‐2014 to May 2016. It was implemented in collaboration with the United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), UNEP, Convention on Biodiversity (CBD), South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) and Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife. This initial set of accounts for river ecosystems has been undertaken to inform the subsequent development of national accounts for other classes of ecosystem assets in South Africa including wetlands, marine and coastal ecosystem, and terrestrial ecosystem. It provided initial thinking around relevant characteristics for marine real and propose an approach to developing indicators of ecological condition that could be applied across wetlands, coastal and marine ecosystem.

Experimental Ecosystem Natural Capital Accounts, Mauritius

This experimental project was initiated in 2014 under the technical assistance of the Indian Ocean Commission’s ISLANDS project and aimed at delivering a proof of concept regarding the accounting framework and demonstration of its feasibility, using existing data. Particularly, the Experimental Ecosystem Natural Capital Accounts (Experimental ENCA), was to test the relevance of the principles of SEEA on ‘Experimental Ecosystem Accounts’, and to look at the feasibility, at the island scale, of the implementation of a practical framework. The report resulting from this project contains various chapters that eloquently show the relevance of the Ecosystem Natural Capital approach with a focus on the accounts of land cover and changes, ecosystem biomass-carbon, ecosystem water, ecosystems integrity/biodiversity account with experimental results calculated based on estimations from 2000 and 2010 (provisional). The objectives relate to the proof of concept of the methodology through the delivery of short-term results with existing and available data, to demonstrate policy relevance within the context of the strategy for the sustainable development of small island developing states. Initial results presented in this report confirm that such accounts can be undertaken and will provide useful information in the future for framing the development of policies and monitoring & evaluation to build the resilience of island states/SIDS against shocks within the broader context of sustainable development.

Natural Capital Accounting & Valuation of Ecosystem Services Project – South Africa (NCAVES)

Under the Global NCA&VES projects launched in 2017 by the UNSD and UN Environment with funding from the European Union, South Africa implemented the national NCA&VES project in 2018. The project aims to assist the country to advance the knowledge agenda on environmental and ecosystem accounting and initiate pilot testing of SEEA EEA, to improve the management of natural biotic resources, ecosystems and their services at the national level as well as mainstream biodiversity and ecosystems in national-level policy planning and implementation. "Overall objectives include:

• Advance the knowledge agenda on Natural Capital Accounting, in particular, ecosystem accounting

• By initiating pilot testing of SEEA Experimental Ecosystem Accounting, with a view to:

• Improving the measurement of natural biotic resources, ecosystems and their services at the (sub)national level

• Mainstreaming biodiversity and ecosystems in (sub)national level policy-planning and implementation

• Contributing to the development of internationally agreed methodology and its use in partner countries.

It includes developing a 10-year National Strategy for Natural Capital Accounting focusing on priority accounts including National land and ecosystem accounts, Protected area accounts, Marine ecosystem accounts, Species accounts and a full suite of ecosystem asset and ecosystem service accounts for KwaZulu-Natal. The project will also explore linkages of these accounts to national economic and demographic data, to show how and where people most depend, and impact, on nature. The project also includes some more experimental accounts in one province, KwaZulu-Natal, which will explore comprehensive ecosystem services accounts in physical and monetary terms. These accounts will be used to produce scenario analyses. The implementation of this project is being led by the Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), and in conjunction with the United Nations Statistics Division, UNEP and CBD          

Assessing and valuing ecosystem services in the Anjeniheny-Zahamena corridor (CAZ), Madagascar

This technical case-study research project stated in 2011 and specifically focus on the environmental mining, carbon, agriculture, tourism and energy sector and managed by the WAVES Madagascar Steering Committee, Conservation International (CI), Madagascar Ministry of Economy and Industry, World Bank Madagascar, and the Madagascar Institute of Statistics (INSTAT). It was conducted under the WAVES activities in two phases. The first phase (initiation phase) was carried out between February to December 2011 and it involves the preparation of two technical case studies as well as feasibility and Planning studies for presentation to the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. The second phase (implementation phase) was executed from 2012 – 2015, during which technical project activities were implemented to:

i. Demonstrate the utility of state-of-the-art analytical and modelling methodologies to advance knowledge on the understanding of the role of natural capital and its contribution to the provision of ecosystem services in Madagascar.

ii. Investigate how the results of such analyses could be used to improve the integration of ecosystem services into local, regional and national policy development.

iii. Investigate the feasibility of scaling up the methodology applied in this case study to other regions in Madagascar and to assist the Government and national stakeholders to identify future priority zones.           

Summary of Macroeconomic Indicators for Natural Capital and Sustainable Development in Madagascar

Within the context of the WAVES Madagascar project which carried out accounting for four the water, mines, timber and macroeconomic indicators, a report was developed in 2016 by the WAVES Madagascar Steering Committee and Ministry of Environment and Planning summarizing the work done in the framework of the implementation of macroeconomic indicators to inform public policies on realistic and effective indicators. It highlights the contribution of natural capital to sustainable development in Madagascar.

Rebased 2013-2018 Annual Gross Domestic Product, Ghana

Under the Rebased 2013-2018 Annual Gross Domestic Product developed by Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), the fishing sub-sector, as well as forestry and logging, featured considerably under the following income measurements:

• Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at Current Market Prices by Economic Activity (Gh¢ Million)

• Distribution of Gross Domestic Product (at Basic Prices) by Economic Activity (percent)

• Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at Constant 2013 Prices by Economic Activity (Gh¢ Million)

• Growth Rates of Gross Domestic Product at Constant 2013 Prices (percent)

• Non-Oil GDP at Current Market Prices by Economic Activity (Gh¢ Million)

• Non-Oil GDP at 2013 Constant Prices by Economic Activity (Gh¢ Million)

The Cooperation for Development of Ecosystem-Natural Capital Accounts in Anglophone West-African Countries Project, Ghana

In 2018, the Bio-Bridge Initiative provided technical assistance to Ghana to organize a 3-day training workshop to help able 20 participants measure and value the environment to support sound macroeconomic policy for development and incorporate Natural Capital Accounting into national accounts and contribute to improved wellbeing, social equity and reduction of environmental risks among others. Implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Ghana, the project set the pace for fostering technical and scientific cooperation between Ghana and other Anglophone West African countries namely the Gambia, Liberia, Nigeria, and Sierra-Leone; on natural resources valuation and Ecosystem-Natural Capital Accounting. Its principal aim was to build national and regional capacities to take full account of the contribution of natural resources and ecosystem services in national accounting systems and to GDP. Likewise, it was set out to allow the participating countries to measure and value the environment to support sound macroeconomic policies for development.

Rebasing and revision of national accounts, Kenya

The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) initiated the process of rebasing and revision of the National Accounts Statistics in 2010^]. Besides collecting and publishing quarterly reports of both physical and monetary accounts of annual fishery landings data by region, freshwater/marine, and species, the KNBS activities also include collection and publication of accounts related to other broad sectors including agriculture, transportation and forestry. These reports are PDF documents that do not leverage the ability to connect to raw, more granular data. For example, both the mining and transportation sectors were included in the quarterly GDP reports, but neither was linked to data such that either of these sectors could be disaggregated to marine resources or ocean transportation.

Similarly, Kenya is proactive within the FAO Food and Agriculture Data Network project (CountrySTAT). This involves a collection of software tools, methods, and standards to facilitate the acquisition, management, and analysis of large, diversified and distributed sets of data at the national and sub-national levels. Several important functions of this system include

It supports multiple-sourced data integration and harmonization according to international standards and contributes to improving data quality and reliability. Through the Kenya CountrySTAT project, FAO forms partnerships with the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics statistical offices and the Ministry of Agriculture to build the national capacity to dissemination internationally comparable official statistics. The Kenya CountrySTAT Secretariat which is now domiciled at the Ministry of Agriculture collaborates with the National CountrySTAT Technical Working Group to ensure consensus on the official data to be uploaded and to make this data available to users promptly with metadata to support its reliability. A peek into the Kenya CountrySTAT system provides raw and granular fisheries data in  CSV and XLS format from 1999 to 2013 on the following indicators:

• Total quantity and value of annual exported fish products

• Distribution of Fish Capture Production Quantity

• Distribution of Value of Fish Capture Production

• Distribution of Fish Aquaculture Production Quantity

• Distribution of Value of Fish Aquaculture Production

• Distribution of in marine waters catches and aquaculture production by species

Just like other National CountrySTAT projects, the Kenya project includes datasets from the following domains: Production, Food availability, Trade, Machinery, Population, Prices, Value added, Land use, Employment, Water, Livestock, National account, Fishery and Forestry. With implications for ocean accounts, the principal aims of Kenya CountrySTAT include that it:

• Allows for the analysis of data coming from different sources to be manipulated and visualized directly online. Various types of charts are available to allow users to be able to perform further analysis.

• Supports online data filtering. Users can skim through complex data sets and easily locate the desired information.

• Allows sub-national data to be visualized through maps to allow a clear and immediate view of statistics at lower administrative levels.

• Supports two or more datasets to be compared side by side either in tabular form or via charts.

Economic analysis of mangrove forests: a Case Study in Gazi Bay

The United Nations Environment Programme in collaboration with the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute undertook this study in 2011 to promote the importance of forests as a significant green economy asset for Kenya. The study quantifies the Total Economic Value (TEV) of the Gazi Bay mangrove forest. The analysis results in a TEV of US$ 1,092 per hectare  per year when measured against different variables including:

• Direct use (including include fishery, timber, eco-tourism, research and education, aquaculture and apiculture) which was reported to account for 20 per cent of the TEV

• Indirect use (shoreline protection, carbon sequestration and biodiversity) accounting for 25 per cent of the TEV

• Non-use value. Direct use values

• Existence value, which represents the value of mangroves in an unharmed state, accounting for 55 per cent of the TEV.

Ecosystem goods and services valuation for Benguela Current LME (BCLME)

An economic valuation of the Benguela Current along the Angolan, Namibian, and South African coasts. The program undertook a partial cost-benefit analysis for formal sectors (did not look at informal sectors) and focused on direct use values or provisioning services.29 Sectors examined included: 1) biodiversity; 2) fisheries; 3) marine recreational activities; 4) mariculture; 5) oil and gas; 6) coastal marine mining; 7) desalination; and 8) ports.29 The total economic value for fisheries across all three countries was estimated at USD 2.2 billion per year, USD 303 billion per year for oil and gas, USD 49.9 million per year for marine aquaculture, and USD 942 million per year for coastal marine mining.29 Values could not be estimated for biodiversity, ports, and desalinization due to lack of data.29 Other hurdles included limited time available for in-depth valuation.

Accounting efforts in Namibia

There is a considerable level of experience in the preparation accounts for natural resources in Namibia, though on a sectoral basis. Natural capital accounting activities in Namibia started with the advent of Namibia Natural Resources Accounting project in the mid-nineties. This project conceived and led by the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism, with financial assistance from Unites State of America International Development (USAID) was aimed at documenting a nation-wide status of the natural resources, economic use and value. The project followed the UN SEEA approach to develop several natural resource accounts for minerals, fisheries, water, livestock, land, land degradation, forestry, energy, and wildlife.

Minerals accounting with data developed from 1980-1995 and future updated to 2005. It centred on the national important mineral resources including diamonds, uranium, and gold. In this regard, physical accounts on the volume of annual extraction and reserves of minerals for diamonds, uranium, and gold; resource rent and taxes from minerals; and monetary accounts were produced.

Fisheries Accounting with particular emphasis commercial fisheries accounts initially developed from 1980-2000 and later updated to 2005. Three most important fisheries species were targeted including hake (Merluccius capensis and Merliccius paradoxus), horse mackerel (Trachurus capensis), and pilchard (Sardinops ocellatus). This resulted in the production of physical accounts (stock and catch of the three main fisheries;  resource rent and taxes from fisheries; and 3 monetary accounts (the value natural capital for fisheries).

An experimental, one-time account was developed within the Forestry Resources Assessment conducted in 2005 by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism.  This resulted in the preparation of an asset and flow accounts (both physical and monetary), this time, following the Integrated Environmental-Economic Accounting (IEEE) methodology.

Land Degradation and Land Accounts were prepared in the 1990s by the Natural Resources Accounting project of the DEA (within the Ministry of Environment and Tourism).

Energy Accounts: Constructed in the 1990s by the Natural Resources Accounting project of the DEA (within the Ministry of Environment and Tourism)

 Wildlife Resource Accounting was prepared In 2004 resulting in the creating of a set of wildlife accounts calculated as part of an experimental, one-time account structured based on the country’s wildlife land use zones. They include both physical and monetary asset accounts as well as production or flow accounts.

3.1.10 Existing projects (data foundation for accounts)

Strengthening of fisheries statistical systems in Central Africa

The project aimed to strengthen national capacities for the collection of fisheries data, the development and implementation of national databases and the development of a sub-regional information exchange system compatible with national information systems in seven central Africa countries including Angola, Cameroon, Congo RD, Congo, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Sao Tomé and Principe. It was implemented between 2014 to 2016 by the Regional Fisheries Commission of the Gulf of Guinea (COREP) and the marine fisheries statistics services of the seven countries in the COREP zone. Outcomes of this project include:

• Training of nearly one hundred agents of the statistical services in data collection methodologies at the national and sub-regional level.

• Development of a training course on data collection which has been integrated into the curriculum of the Sub-regional Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics (ISSEA).

• Operationalization of a National data collection systems in Congo, Cameroon, Gabon, Sao Tome and Principe and in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

• Development of an innovative data collection application from an open source mobile application with pilot tested in five COREP member countries.

• Development of a sub-regional database as well as an information exchange protocol between COREP and its member states.

Regional program to strengthen the collection of fishery statistics in the Member States and creation of a regional database

As part of the concerted development plan for fisheries and aquaculture of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), adopted in 2007, this program aims to strengthen the technical and institutional capacities of member states of UEMOA, in the collection and processing of fisheries statistical data and to establish a regional database. The main objective is the creation of an atlas of fisheries to provide summaries of the results of the "framework survey in continental artisanal fisheries" carried out in 2012 and used as a tool for creating indicators resulting from the framework survey carried out in the 8 Member States. It disseminates comments, national and regional analyses in Burkina Faso, Benin, Ivory Coast, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo, The programme is been executed by the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA), French Institute for Research and Development (IRD) and the AGROCAMPUS OUEST, an oceanic Development Consortium was created to support the implementation.      

Regional Project for the Assessment of Fish Stocks in the West Africa Monetary Union (WAEMU) Member States

Implemented between 2011 to 2016, this project was aimed at improving and strengthening the state of knowledge of fishery resources in West Africa Monetary Union (WAEMU) member states. It covered the five coastal states of WAEMU (Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea-Bissau, Senegal, and Togo) and 4 non-WAEMU countries (Mauritania, Gambia, Guinea-Conakry and Ghana)—given the continuity of the West African coast and the existence of shared stocks, four neighbouring non-WAEMU countries.  The resulting Atlas of Scientific Campaigns provides information on the series of campaigns carried out within the framework of the Regional Fisheries Stock Assessment Project (PRESH) under the coordination of UEMOA and with contributions from Dakar National  Oceanographic Research Centre (CRODT), National Centre for Fisheries Sciences of Boussoura, Guinea, Mauritanian Institute for Oceanographic Fisheries Research, Guinea-Bissau Centre for Applied Fisheries Research, Centre for Oceanographic Research of Côte d'Ivoire (CRO), Togo Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, Benin Institute for Fisheries and Ocean Research (IRHOB), Gambia Department of Fisheries, Ghana Fisheries Department, Fisheries directorates of each member state and 4 other neighbouring states.

Regional Cooperation for New Ecosystem Accounting Indicators in Africa (Copernicea)

• The Copernicea is designed to cover multiple themes such as land cover, ecological infrastructure, bio-carbon, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, water use and management as well as population, and aim to provide participating countries with a structured and autonomous capacity. Proposed to run from 2018 to 2020, the main objectives of the Copernicea is to:

• Contribute to the measures of the wealth of Nations in a perspective of sustainable development

• Test concrete environmental and economic accounting systems in order to show the interest and facilitate their integration in the strategies of the donors

• Implement the Aichi biodiversity target on incorporating biodiversity values into national accounting systems

• Participate in the establishment of indicators of progress complementing the gross domestic product and the statistical capacity building of developing countries by implementing SDG 17.19

• Expand the commitment of African countries to the establishment of environmental accounting systems and the promotion of natural capital accounting (Sustainability Summit in Africa and the Gaborone Declaration)

• Promote and build the capacity of African expertise on ecosystem-natural capital accounting"

The approach is based on a mechanism to operationalize and fast track the development of biophysical and socio-economic data infrastructure of ecosystem natural capital accounting in a way that guarantees the sustainability of this mechanism in six West and North African countries as well as its replication in other countries of the region. Copernicea involves six French-speaking countries out of which five are coastal states (Guinea Conakry, Morocco, Senegal and Tunisia) and expected in future to extend to Benin, Togo, Cote d'Ivoire, Mauritania and Algeria. It designed to work in relation with experiences already conducted and in progress in the Indian Ocean in Comoros, in Madagascar and Mauritius. It is being led by Sahara and Sahel Observatory (OSS) and supported by the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD), l’Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM).

Natural Capital Mapping and Accounting in Liberia

This was a pilot project implemented in 2016 by Conservation International in collaboration with the Liberia Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) focused on mapping and accounting for Liberia’s natural capital, to better understand the role of natural capital in economic growth and production. It addresses issues related to the environment, protected areas, forest and timber, biodiversity, forest carbon and coastal protection. By building a foundation of spatial and economic data on natural capital, the project was also aimed at supporting Liberia’s sustainable development, to safeguard its biodiversity and ecosystems and the benefits that they provide, to secure a more prosperous future and the well-being of its people. This pilot project also assisted Liberia in making progress towards the commitments of the Gabarone Declaration for Sustainability in Africa (GDSA), specifically, paving the way to Natural Capital Accounting. In this project, maps of essential natural capital for biodiversity, forest carbon, bushmeat and non-timber forest products, freshwater ecosystem services (including flood regulation and sediment regulation for hydropower), and coastal protection from mangrove ecosystems values were developed using geographic information systems and ecosystem services modelling using tools such as WaterWorld and InVEST.  The critical information from this project can provide a first-cut assessment enabling Liberia to make important natural resource decisions as it develops plans for achieving its Blue Economy.

Annex

Ocean Accounts Diagnostic Tool