Malta was recently honoured to host the first international meeting of Ocean Ambassadors. This was a significant event, first and foremost because it was the first meeting of its kind and secondly, because it was the first time that high level representatives from the United Nations, the European Union, the Commonwealth and a number of countries with special interests or roles with respect to the ocean came around one table to discuss the challenges of present-day ocean governance.
It gave me great satisfaction that this meeting was co-organised by my ministry together with the UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for the Oceans, Ambassador Peter Thomson.
As an outward-looking island state, Malta’s foreign policy has, throughout the years, always sought to contribute towards furthering the development of international ocean governance.
It is well known that, in the 1960s, Maltese diplomat Arvid Pardo’s efforts led to the establishment of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), where the seabed was recognised as being part of the “common heritage of mankind”.
The challenges faced by our oceans today are many and interrelated: warming, acidification, rising sea levels, coral reef degradation, proliferation of ‘dead zones’, loss of critical habitats, species and biodiversity, shifting species ranges and changing ocean conditions, as well as harmful fisheries practices and marine pollution resulting in losses of livelihoods, homes and food security.
We all know that oceans and climate change are inextricably linked. For example, an effect of global warming is that the polar ice caps melt and, as a result of this, the sea level rises.
This not only affects populations who live in coastal areas such as ours – it also effects marine life and marine ecosystems. As the oceans become warmer, species shift from one area to another. Sometimes, invasive species may have a significant impact on native marine species, thereby modifying the native ecosystem.
We produce 350 million tons of plastic per year, and eight million tons of it ends up in our oceans
Waste generated by human activities also plays a part in the degradation of our oceans. We produce 350 million tons of plastic per year, and eight million tons of it ends up in our oceans.
A substantial amount of this ends up in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, which is a large region in the Pacific measuring 1.6 million square kilometres.
Plastic takes years to break down, and when it finally disintegrates into smaller fragments, it contributes to an increase in microplastics in the oceans. Such plastics cannot be seen by the naked eye. They make their way inside the fish we eat, meaning that it is not only marine life that we’re endangering with these practices, but ourselves too!
The Malta meeting took stock of the numerous important ongoing global initiatives in favour of ocean health: the 2020 UN Conference; the Commonwealth Blue Charter and its Action Groups along with the IGC on an international legally binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ).
The development of the International Seabed Authority’s Mining Code, which is the European Union’s International Ocean governance and maritime and fisheries policies, was also highlighted, along with the Our Oceans Conferences, the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, the Food and Agriculture Organisation’s fisheries and aquaculture work, the International Maritime Organisation’s maritime environmental work and the UN Decade for Ocean Science.
By bringing representatives of these initiatives around the same table, we sought to improve partnerships, collaboration and cooperation to help to deliver in the different processes.
This is the time to deliver on our commitments. In so doing, we also need to keep in mind the importance of developing and supporting national, regional and international mechanisms to implement agreed commitments.
Equally important are the mobilisation of and access to necessary funding for ocean related projects.
Capacity building in the area of ocean governance, especially for small island developing states, is crucial. Here, Malta has a lot to offer in terms of the several programmes available through the Malta-based IMO International Maritime Law Institute, the International Ocean Institute, and the Commonwealth Small States Centre for Excellence.
At the meeting, I stated that Malta views the sustainability of the world’s oceans as a top priority and as a result took this initiative to put a spotlight on the role of the Ocean Ambassadors in safeguarding the health and sustainability of our seas.
Ocean Ambassadors play an important role in fostering ocean awareness, cooperation and actions in favour of the oceans. At the national level, they play a special role in raising public awareness while sensitising government, businesses and civil society. At the regional and international levels, Ocean Ambassadors foster linkages between several initiatives.
Last year, Malta appointed Alan Deidun as its Ocean Ambassador, becoming one of the six appointed Ocean Ambassadors worldwide. Now more than ever, we encourage other states to appoint Ocean Ambassadors.
I was very pleased to see that, at this first meeting, we enjoyed the full support of the European Commissioner for the Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Karmenu Vella, and the Commonwealth secretary general, Patricia Scotland, as well as other states, UN bodies and institutions.
As I look forward to more meetings of this group, I am confident that the winds stemming from this small island will strengthen to make global waves.
Carmelo Abela is the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion.