Report By Humayun Kabir from Lisbon,Portugal. The high-level event, to be co-hosted on the sidelines of the African Union Executive Council as an Africa-Europe High-Level Policy Dialogue on Ocean Governance and Blue Economy, will build on the progress achieved under the leadership of the current AU Presidency and AU Commission and beyond.
The high-level policy dialogue will provide a space to advance a Joint Vision and Roadmap for a strengthened Africa-Europe Ocean Partnership. This event aims to highlight Africa’s leadership in Ocean Governance and Blue Economy, as well as the opportunities associated with a strengthened Africa-Europe Ocean Partnership.
This activity will be jointly organized by the Governments of Comoros, Seychelles, and Portugal, together with the Africa-Europe Foundation (AEF), and with the support of the African Union Commission and the European Union. It will take place on February 15 from 07.30 to 10.00 am.
The high-level side event will contribute to advancing a mutually beneficial vision and set of common priorities for Africa and Europe on ocean policy and action, including on the international stage at the 2024 African Union Summit, and towards 2024, a key year for International Treaties, and revised AU programming.
The event will also pave the way for a collective sustainable future as Africa moves into its 2nd 10-year Implementation Plan of the AU Agenda 2063, Europe enters a new policy cycle, and the international community starts preparing the third UN Ocean Conference in 2025, following up on the work since the last edition in 2022 in Lisbon, Portugal.