CHILE – Latin America and the Caribbean is home to 47 of the world’s 258 marine ecoregions, and the vast majority of our countries (23) have more marine territory than land area. On average, 50 percent of the region’s territory corresponds to the ocean. In the Caribbean islands, this proportion rises to 91 percent and is nearly 99 percent in some States such as Barbados and Antigua and Barbuda.
That is why the region is positioned as a crucial strategic actor in the marine life agenda and why it has a historic opportunity to build a sustainable, just and inclusive marine economy.
This was according to the participants in a virtual event entitled Regional Blue Talk: Latin America and the Caribbean On the Road to the Third United Nations Ocean Conference 2025 (UNOC3), which took place this Tuesday, May 13, organized by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the embassies of Costa Rica and France in Chile.
The event’s objective was to offer a platform for dialogue in preparation for the UNOC3 where experts, government representatives and key stakeholders could identify regional and subregional priorities, specificities and challenges, share experiences, and formulate recommendations that would contribute to building a shared regional perspective on this issue.
The meeting was inaugurated by José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, ECLAC’s executive secretary, and Gina Guillén Grillo, director general of Foreign Policy and Presidential Envoy for the Ocean of Costa Rica.
In his welcome remarks, Salazar-Xirinachs emphasized that this event represents a unique opportunity to strengthen our collaboration and commitment to protecting the ocean.
“The ocean economy is highly diverse and ever more relevant to Latin America and the Caribbean’s economic and social development. Activities such as fisheries, aquaculture, maritime transport and tourism contribute significantly to the population’s income and to employment in our region. However, this relevance is still not reflected in sufficient investment in marine-coastal science, technology and innovation.
In addition, our marine ecosystems face increasing pressure, in the form of overfishing, pollution by plastics and nutrients, biodiversity loss, and the impacts of climate change, such as acidification and rising sea levels. All of this, without yet contemplating the risks associated with the possible development of deep-sea mining, the expansion of which poses serious questions about the integrity of habitats that have yet to be studied much and about global rules for its governance,” the senior United Nations official warned.
In this context, he explained, the Third United Nations Ocean Conference – which will be held in Nice, France in June – represents a key opportunity for making progress on concrete commitments and strengthening the role of Latin America and the Caribbean in the global ocean agenda.
The executive secretary announced that ECLAC has produced, with support from French Cooperation, a study entitled Overview of the ocean, seas and marine resources in Latin America and the Caribbean’s sustainable development, which will be presented next month during the UNOC3 on June 12, at a joint side event with the CAF and the governments of France and Costa Rica, in the blue zone. The report offers an updated perspective on the region’s main progress, challenges and opportunities in relation to fulfilling SDG 14, which aspires to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.” This publication aims to produce evidence and public policy recommendations that would promote a sustainable blue economy and contribute to achieving the 2030 Agenda.
Meanwhile, Gina Guillén Grillo noted that the Third UN Ocean Conference, co-chaired by France and Costa Rica, has as its theme “accelerating action and mobilizing all actors to conserve and sustainably use the ocean.” It is the right time for the region to mobilize and address the challenges we face in preserving and utilizing the ocean in a sustainable way, she said.
“It is very important that in our region we find solutions to the crises facing the ocean through strategies to accelerate the fulfillment of SDG 14. That is why several of our countries are promoting this blue agenda,” the high-level Costa Rican representative stated. She added that there is still a major disconnect between the level of threat to the ocean and the level of investment for tackling it. “That is one of the major challenges that we have to address,” she indicated.
The Regional Blue Talk for Latin America and the Caribbean event was structured around three panels that addressed, in a systemic manner, the challenges under SDG 14: i) towards sustainable fisheries and effective ocean governance; ii) the transition to a sustainable blue economy in the context of climate change; and iii) action, cooperation, and governance for a clean and healthy ocean. The participants in the discussions included specialists in various marine issues, leaders of regional artisanal fishing organizations and of women’s networks in maritime authorities who emphasized the importance of their voice being heard in these kinds of debates, international scientists, and specialists from United Nations organizations that study environmental phenomena related to the ocean.
Speaking in the event’s closing segment were Javier Medina, ECLAC’s acting deputy executive secretary; Renaud Collard, First Counsellor of the embassy of France in Chile; and Adriana Murillo, Costa Rica’s ambassador to Chile.
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