Minister of Environment, Climate Change and Technology Aminath Shauna has emphasised the importance of adopting the worldwide aim of protecting 30% of the global ocean and utilising 100% of the ocean sustainably. She made the remarks while delivering a statement at the general plenary debate of the United Nations Ocean Conference 2022, as the special representative of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.
Delivering the statement, Minister Shauna said that urgent and effective measures, including the adoption of a post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, are necessary to protect the ocean. The minister spoke about how the lives of every Maldivian are intricately bound to the ocean and noted that the rich ocean biodiversity of the Maldives powers the economy, contributing over two-thirds of employment and 60% of the gross domestic product (GDP). He also said that the oceans are an asset to the Maldives, attracting visitors worldwide and sustaining the country’s tourism industry.
At the debate, Minister Shauna also spoke about how human activities are causing ocean acidification and affecting the migratory patterns of fish, putting the primary food source of the Maldives at risk, and highlighted the consequences of climate change on the country’s coral reefs. She noted the devastation caused to the marine ecosystem by plastic pollution and called for increased global ambition and action to preserve the health and wealth of the ocean.
Furthermore, Minister Shauna emphasised that Maldivians do not wish to stand idly while the oceans are dying, stressing several efforts the Maldives uses for ocean-friendly fishing. She said that those include using traditional pole-and-line fishing methods with zero by-catches and enacting legislation to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, which at present is a severe threat to sustainable small-scale fisheries and coastal fishing communities like the Maldives. She also called upon the international community to show their resolve to end IUU fishing.
Moreover, Minister Shauna said the Maldives is subject to high import tariffs from some of the main markets on fish exports and stressed that sustainability should be economically viable. She also noted President Solih’s decision to ban the import, production, and sale of 13 single-use plastics, aiming to phase out their use by the end of 2030. She also highlighted that 79 marine areas have been designated as protected sites, including 14% of the coral reefs.
Additionally, Minister Shauna said that one country cannot protect and preserve the oceans alone, and called for unified global action in which sustainable fisheries are the norm and countries adopt development practices that include ocean protection and climate resilience. She concluded her statement by saying that the coral reefs can only be saved by limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees.