The Government of Grenada hosted the first Strategy Meeting for Action on Blue Growth and Food Security in March of 2015. Blue Growth refers to the long-term strategy to support sustainable growth in the marine and maritime sectors as a whole.
This meeting brought together a select group of over forty global Ocean Leaders from Government, private sector, fisheries organizations, international organizations, academia and civil society. The meeting represented a response to major recent developments in the global oceans agenda. A primary point of focus was on developing innovative ocean financing, to bring forward and accelerate adoption of ocean technologies.
This year Grenada hosted the first Regional Blue Week and Investment Conference in May 2016. During this conference a number of important partnerships were created and MOUs signed including the ratification of the Port State Measures Agreement which aims to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. A Blue Growth Master Plan was also discussed. This document presents a vision of possible initiatives and interventions in the fields of Coral Restoration, the Marine and Yachting Sector, Ecotourism and Fisheries.
Grenada held a National Consultation on the development of a Blue Growth Strategy for the tri-island state on Friday, 19 August at the National Stadium. This meeting seeks to foster the creation of a ‘Blue Oceans Month’ in the coming year which will finalize and concretize the national strategy.
The consultation aimed to:
- Engage local leaders in the private sector and financial institutions to promote investment, innovation and to encourage public-private partnerships.
- Raise awareness on Blue Growth, bringing together all stakeholders and advocating for innovation in the coastal and marine sectors
- Share the Blue Growth vision which showcases a number of plans and initiatives which could shape the future of the coastal areas in the near future. This consultation will be an important opportunity to gather local feedback on its contents and goals.
- Create synergies with existing projects. There are a number of projects on the ground, including the Grenadian-German Pilot Project (Integrated Climate Change Adaptation Strategies), the Japan Climate Change Partnership, The UNDP Ridge to Reef Project and the UNEP EBA Project which are involved in activities such as coral reef and mangrove restoration, climate smart agriculture, water stewardship and rehabilitation of watersheds . Many of the projects have a strong focus on livelihood opportunities for local persons. The ICCAS project in particular has setup a Community Climate Change Adaptation Fund which so far has sponsored 29 community driven projects encompassing the entire tri-island state, many of which are in the marine sector.
Grenada is also currently benefitting from projects which are assisting in the use of new technologies such as FADS (Fish Aggregating Devices) as well as other ways to help fishermen such as the installation of ice boxes on fishing boats in rural communities and in the area of Seamoss cultivation.
Through these areas of intervention, Grenada is seeking to become a global exemplar for “Blue Growth” which could help the tri-island state to increase its natural capital, attract new investment, grow jobs and make existing businesses in the sub-sectors more profitable.
It is foreseen that these initiatives can be linked to the development of the National Sustainable Development Plan 2030. A long-term vision is critical to the success of Blue Growth in order to see success in increasing Food and Water Security, attracting sustainable development and investors and also in promoting local action on the ground.
Ministry of Agriculture, Lands, Forestry, Fisheries and Environment
