AFD joins Blue Action Fund to better protect marine biodiversity
published on 28 October 2018
On the eve of the international conference Our Ocean, which opened on 29 October in Bali, AFD joined a fund devoted to financing initiatives implemented by NGOs aimed at halting marine biodiversity loss and promoting the development of the coastal communities that depend on it. These are key areas which remain largely under-funded.
Blue Action Fund helps national and international NGOs better protect oceans and coastlines in developing countries, because while everyone has clearly understood their importance, human pressure on these areas is continuing: they are and remain seriously threatened. Additional resources are therefore necessary to allow existing efforts to be continued or rescaled and new projects to come into being.
The fund was set up in December 2016 by the German Federal Ministry for Cooperation and Development (BMZ) with the German development bank KfW. In June 2017, it was joined by the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Agence Française de Développement (AFD) therefore became the third main contributor on Sunday 28 October: it will provide a EUR 2.5m grant and will be a member of the Supervisory Board for a period of 3 years.
The projects already implemented thanks to the Blue Action Fund include:
- The creation of marine protected areas (MPAs) managed by communities in six coastal cities in Mozambique with the NGO Rare.
- Improving community fisheries management in the East Pacific (Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador) with the NGO Conservation international.
- The creation of the first real marine protected areas in Sao Tomé e Principe with notably Fauna & Flora International.
- The effective management of one of the largest MPAs in Africa, Primeras and Segundas Environmental Protected Area (PSEPA) in Mozambique, with WWF.
Blue Action Fund is a collective opportunity to make a quantitative and qualitative leap forward in the protection of marine resources. It will contribute to preserving oceans on which many communities in developing countries depend.
NGOs play a major role in promoting the conservation of marine and coastal ecosystems in developing countries. The fund will allocate grants to NGOs selected following a call for proposals which will be closely followed by AFD.
Our ocean, our legacy
The financing agreement, signed on 28 October in Bali by Emmanuel Baudran, Director of AFD’s agency in Indonesia, and Markus Knigge, Executive Director of Blue Action Fund, took place on the eve of the opening of the fifth edition of the Our Ocean conference. This international conference is being held in Bali on 29 and 30 October 2018. Following the 2017 edition in Malta, it involves continuing to generate financial commitments and measures for the sustainability of oceans. Since 2014, Our Ocean has mobilized some EUR 16bn and protected 12.4 million km2 of marine areas.
Hundreds of participants from all over the world – governments, companies, donors, scientists, civil society organizations and young leaders – are expected this year. Marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, but also pollution and climate-related impacts, will once again be central to the debates and priorities.
It should be noted that a new Blue Action Fund call for proposals has just been launched in Bali. It concerns Southeast Asia.
Key sectors
AFD’s project portfolio in the maritime field stands at some EUR 450m. Operations concern the promotion of aquaculture and sustainable fisheries, support for inclusive fisheries and aquaculture sectors, the protection of marine and coastal biodiversity and support for communities that depend on it.
Further reading:
Indonesia: The sea and its resources under strict surveillance
