Why African states are pushing to unlock blue economy

A fisherman casts his net into the ocean in the Indian Ocean on the Kenyan coast. [File, Standard] African maritime states are yet to unlock the potential in the blue economy despite embarking on the journey for economic transformation through the sector 13 years ago. While the Association of African Maritime Administrations (AAMA) was formed in 2012 with an ambitious mandate, its slow progress is attributable to various systemic challenges, and the blue economy remains vulnerable to exploitation. Key issues include inconsistent implementation of frameworks, weak enforcement, insufficient funding and technology, and the complex nature of the challenges themselves. The Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA), which hosts the AAMA secretariat, has been chairing the group since 2022, building up capacity and dealing with formation challenges amid limited financial resources and slow listing of membership. In its just-concluded 8th conference held in Monrovia, Liberia, it was clear that AAMA is lagging in the implementation of its mandate. AAMA Chairman and KMA Director General Justus Nyarandi noted that Africa is yet to get its own ships while its fishing resources are still being plundered. He, however, noted that despite the challenges, immense opportunities remain. He urged the lobby's member states to continue with its agenda, noting it now has a fully functional office in Mombasa "Piracy may have evolved in form, but it persists. Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing continues to plunder our resources. We are yet to run African internal fleets, and our seafarers still lack ships for sea time training," he said. "The potential of our blue economy is yet to be fully explored. Marine pollution threatens our ecosystems, and the impacts of climate change are eroding our coastlines and altering our maritime domain," he warned. The conference, held from September 30 to October 3, was attended by Liberian President Joseph Boakai, Chinese Ambassador to Liberia Yin Chenguwu, Liberia Maritime Authority Chief Executive Officer Neto Lighe, Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency Director General Dr Dayo Mobereola and AAMA Head of Secretariat Mr Boetse Ramahlo, among others. It was themed "Safeguarding our Oceans, Promoting Decarbonisation in shipping and exploring Africa's blue economy potential." Participants discussed financing the sustainable blue economy sector and maritime transport in Africa, facilitation of maritime development and trade on the continent and maritime governance. They also tackled issues of capacity development and training for future maritime challenges and environmental protection, and sustainable green shipping within the context of a just equitable transition. In coming together, the AAMA members want to see how collaborations across governments, industry, and international bodies can pool resources and expertise in areas like knowledge transfer, technology adoption, and infrastructure development. They seek to use AAMA as an avenue for sharing best practices and innovative solutions to improve the design, maintenance, and real-time monitoring of domestic ferry operations in Africa. AAMA seeks to develop mechanisms to improve access to adequate insurance and financing, ensuring the sector's ability to recover from incidents and invest in long-term safety improvements. AAMA is anchored on the African Union's Agenda 2063, which envisions a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development driven by its own citizens, the African Maritime Transport Charter and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). "The blue economy is central to this vision, and now AAMA has picked up with a fully furnished office space and a bank account," explained Nyarandi. He said AAMA members should enhance collaboration in maritime domain awareness, information sharing, and joint exercises to secure sea lanes and protect maritime resources from all forms of illicit activity. He urged the grouping to invest in technology, saying that the future of maritime administration is digital. "We must invest in modern technology, from vessel traffic management systems to digital ports, and crucially, in our human capital. The IMO's (International Maritime Organisation) support through its Integrated Technical Cooperation programme remains invaluable in this endeavour," he observed. To unlock intra-African maritime trade under the AfCFTA, he said, AAMA members must work towards harmonising their regulations, simplifying procedures, and making the ports more efficient and competitive. "Our pursuit of economic gain must be in harmony with environmental stewardship. We must be at the forefront of implementing the IMO's strategy on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and promoting the health of our marine ecosystems," he added. AAMA was established in October 2012 when 16 maritime administrations met in Mombasa and agreed to the formation of the association. They agreed to draw up a master plan on measures necessary to progress the maritime agenda as envisaged in the African Maritime Transport Charter and the 2050 African Integrated Maritime Strategy (AIMS 2050). Maritime nations agreed to strengthen cooperation at the regional, continental and international levels in harmonising policies and goals necessary for the growth of the African maritime sector and enhancement of continental collaboration. They agreed to lay a firm foundation for regular consultations to enable African maritime administrations to build joint positions on issues of common concern in the maritime sector. They also sought to promote the sharing of best practices among the African maritime administrations in the overall management and operation of maritime authorities and other maritime entities on the continent. They aim to revive the African ship registrars' forum and initiate the procedure for AAMA to be granted observer status at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). AAM members also want to increase the participation of Africa in international maritime trade through ship ownership and seafarers. They seek to work with existing continental, regional and national Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) to establish dedicated specialised maritime funding and financing facilities to support Africa's maritime sector. The association is pushing for the creation of conducive frameworks for enterprise development in Africa's maritime sector. In the ambitious plan, AAMA seeks to collaborate with the relevant maritime associations and organisations, including the African Ship-Owners Association, for placement of cadets for sea-time training. They also plan to establish a peer review mechanism for improving maritime administrations in Africa.

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