The First Asia-Pacific Blue Economy Forum, organized by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade has commenced on Monday, and will run until Tuesday.
The Forum is convened by UNDP’s Climate Finance Network (CFN), supported by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The Forum is part of CFN’s regional convenings to share knowledge and innovative practices to explore financing options for investments in the blue economy in Asia and the Pacific.
The Forum brings together government ministries, private sector representatives, civil society organizations, and practitioners from 15 countries to discuss key themes on the blue economy.
The discussions of this forum will cover several topics ranging from ocean governance, blue economy approaches, financing for ocean industries, the role of the private sector, and the importance of regional cooperation in advancing the blue economy agenda.
The coastal regions and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in Asia and the Pacific region have a significant population relying on their coastal ecosystems, while the ocean plays a vital role in the region’s economic growth, employing over 60 million people, producing over 80% of the global fish production, and operating the largest shipping industry which powers over 80% of the global trade according to Asian Development Bank (ADB)’s latest reports.
The blue economy has the potential to attract new sources of capital through blended financing and innovative financing approaches. The two-day forum will cover emerging financing opportunities and share experiences from several countries on how public policies are evolving to attract investment from several actors and how the private sector is responding to these policy shifts in unlocking their capital for national and regional priorities.
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