Blue Economy: Towards India-Africa Cooperation

Promoting a blue economy has become a priority in various parts of the world including in the African countries and India. This focus on blue economy is driven by the gradual recognition of the economic potential of the maritime space. A large part of Africa’s economic activities are linked to the oceans. According to United Nations Economic Commission of Africa, Africa has jurisdiction over 13 million square kilometres of maritime zone including 6.5 kilometres of the continental shelf. Among Africa’s 54 countries, 34 are coastal.1 In addition, 90 percent of the continent’s trade is conducted through the oceans. Similarly, India with a coastline of 7516 kilometres, over 1200 island territories and a huge Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 2.4 million square kilometres, recognizes the importance of maritime sphere.2 Moreover nine of India’s 28 states (provinces) and two of the country’s nine union territories are coastal. At the same time, 97 percent of India’s trade takes place over the seas.3 The existence of vast natural resources, both living and non- living, in the marine ecosystem, has led to a concern about sustainability of harnessing these resources. The increasing emphasis on the blue economy by policy makers in the African countries and India, presents an opportunity for cooperation in this crucial area.

Blue Economy: The Concept

The concept of blue economy is still evolving and at the moment there is no universally accepted definition available. Gunter Pauli’s book The Blue Economy 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs (2010) brought this concept into the discourse. According to him blue economy approach calls for solutions being determined by the local environment as well as their physical and ecological characteristics. The application of blue economy concept to the marine sphere took place at the Rio +20, United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development held in Rio de Janeiro in 2012. At the Rio conference, blue economy was described as an ocean economy that aims for the “improvement of human wellbeing and social equity while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.”4 The blue economy concept goes beyond the term ocean economy that is defined as “any economic activity which directly or indirectly uses sea as an input.” 5 The United Nations (UN) considers blue economy in “a sustainable development framework for addressing equity in access to development of and sharing of benefits from marine resources.”6 The UN further views oceans as “development spaces” where spatial planning integrates conservation, sustainable use, oil and mineral wealth extraction, bioprospecting, sustainable energy production and marine transport.7 Thus blue economy covers several sectors directly or indirectly linked to the oceans such as fishing, minerals, shipping and port infrastructure, marine biotechnology, marine manufacturing, marine renewable energy, marine tourism, marine construction, marine commerce, ocean governance and education.

Towards India Africa Cooperation

Globally several countries such as the US, China, Australia and Brazil have evolved strategies that focus on developing maritime resources and blue economy in particular. Similarly multilaterally, the European Union, Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), Indian Ocean Rima Association (IORA) and East Asia Summit (EAS) have highlighted the importance of blue economy.

Within Africa, the African Union’s Agenda 2063 lays special emphasis on development of blue economy for the continent’s growth.8 Similarly AU’s 2050 Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy (2050 AIM Strategy) seeks “to foster more wealth creation from Africa’s oceans, seas and inland water ways by developing a thriving maritime economy…”9 Mauritius is the first country within the African continent to develop a roadmap for blue economy (2013). It has set up a Ministry of Ocean Economy, Marine Resources, Fisheries, Shipping and Outer Island. In 2014, South Africa launched Operation Phakisa to harness the blue economy. Similarly countries like Seychelles and Kenya have developed comprehensive plans to deal with blue economy. In 2015, Seychelles launched the long term National Development Plan, with blue economy as the centrepiece. Similarly in May 2016, Kenya set up a Department of Fisheries and Blue Economy under the Ministry of Agriculture.

Efforts by the African countries to give thrust towards building maritime capacities and blue economy find an echo in India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has observed that for him “the blue chakra or wheel in India’s national flag represents the potential of blue revolution or the ocean economy”10 . In 2015, during a visit to Mauritius, Modi unveiled a new vision in the maritime sphere – Security and Growth for All (SAGAR).11 This proactive strategy calls for increase in maritime cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region and reiterates the centrality of oceans in India’s economic and security policy. Another important initiative, mooted by Modi is the “Sagarmala”.12 This mega project calls for port modernisation and infrastructure development, coastal area development and connectivity within India.

Hence there is tremendous scope for India and the African countries to work towards enhancing cooperation in this crucial area. The outcome document of the third India Africa Forum Summit, “India Africa Framework for Strategic Cooperation” refers to blue economy as an area of future cooperation.13 Similarly collaboration in the blue economy sphere was discussed during Modi’s visits to South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya in July 2016 and earlier visits to Mauritius and Seychelles in 2015. However as pointed to earlier, blue economy encompasses a large area of economic activity- including aquaculture, marine manufacturing, port infrastructure development, deep sea mining, ocean governance, etc. India and the African countries, bilaterally and at the regional level need to identify the important sectors for cooperation. India has the experience and the expertise to support the African initiatives to develop and manage the maritime resources. In recent years Prime Minister Modi has given high priority to enhancing relations with African countries. In order to keep the momentum of building political and economic ties with this increasingly important region, steps should be taken towards tailoring and funding joint projects for sustainable development of the blue economy in Africa.

• 1. United Nations Economic Commission of Africa, Blue Economy, UNECA, 2016, at https://www.uneca.org/sites/default/files/PublicationFiles/blue_economy_….
• 2. Data Base on Coastal States of India, at http://iomenvis.nic.in/index2.aspx?slid=&sublinkid=119&langid=1&mid=1, Harsh Pant, ‘A force to reckon with’, The Telegraph, February 20, 2016, at https://www.telegraphindia.com/1160220/jsp/opinion/story_70239.jsp.
• 3. Ibid.
• 4. United Nations, “Blue Economy Concept paper”, New York, 2015, at https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/2978BEconcept.pdf.
• 5. SK Mohanty et al , Prospects of the Blue Economy in the Indian Ocean, RIS, New Delhi, 2015.
• 6. United Nations, “Blue Economy Concept paper”, New York, 2015, at https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/2978BEconcept.pdf
• 7. Ibid
• 8. African Union, “Agenda 2063: Africa We Want”, 2015, at http://www.un.org/en/africa/osaa/pdf/au/agenda2063.pdf
• 9. African Union, “2050 Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy” (2050 AIM Strategy), 2012, at http://cggrps.org/wp-content/uploads/2050-AIM-Strategy_EN.pdf.
• 10. Text of PMs remarks on the commissioning of the coast ship Barracuda, March 12, 2015, at http://www.pmindia.gov.in/en/news_updates/text-of-the-pms-remarks-on-the….
• 11. Ibid
• 12. MEA, “Sagarmala concept and implementation towards blue revolution”, March 25, 2015, at http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=117691.
• 13. Third India Africa Forum Summit, “India Africa Framework for Strategic Cooperation”, 29 October 2015, at http://www.mea.gov.in/Uploads/PublicationDocs/25981_framework.pdf.