The BBNJ Agreement and the Great Blue Wall: Unlocking Ocean Conservation and Capacity for Africa

Pollution, climate change, non-renewable resource extraction, unsustainable tourism, shipping, and fishing are placing our ocean under unprecedented pressure. Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ), commonly known as international waters or the high seas, face significant anthropogenic pressures. While the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) obliges its parties to protect the marine environment, ABNJ are especially vulnerable to the impacts of overexploitation and neglect. ABNJ designation as a 'Common Heritage of Humankind'—belonging to no one yet theoretically accessible to all—has fostered a quintessential example of the ‘Tragedy of the Commons'. This tragedy is compounded by the political, financial, and logistical challenges of conducting ocean science and implementing ocean conservation measures. 

These factors, among others, have led to a historical neglect of this global commons in conservation efforts. While numerous international organizations and agreements, many stemming from the UNCLOS, exist to manage the use of ocean resources, they have been unable to prevent the current situation. The Agreement under the (UNCLOS) on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of ABNJ or Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement arises to not only help reverse our ocean's destruction and help the world achieve The Global Biodiversity Framework's Target 3: "30X30", but through its "package deal" also offer's the Global South a path to achieve UNCLOS's provision on Promotion of the development and transfer of marine technology.¹  

To achieve the BBNJ Agreement's explicit purposes of conservation and sustainable use of biological resources in the ABNJ, an 'all-hands-on-deck' approach is required. With ABNJ comprising approximately half of the earth's surface and Global South States having 70% of the world's coastline, but limited ocean governance capacity, it is vital that Global South States are empowered to be effective partners in implementing the BBNJ Agreement.  

This paper focuses on members and partners of IUCN's efforts in Eastern and Southern Africa to increase ocean governance capacity within, between and beyond national jurisdictions. It highlights how vital it is for governments and all stakeholders to understand the ecological connectivity between the ocean that is within national territories and ABNJ. Through the Great Blue Wall Initiative this paper explains the interoperability of resources being made available through the BBNJ Agreement's provisions on Capacity Building and the Transfer of Marine Technology,² paying particular attention to the importance of achieving its provisions on needs assessments.³ Ultimately, The Western Indian Ocean region's and Africa's ability to design marine protected areas that preserve and regenerate seascapes that are diverse, resilient, and productive depends on how well capacity and technology sharing is delivered. 

Abstract word count: 42