Special Interest Group (SIG) on Blue Economy

The United Nations defined Blue Economy as a “sustainable ocean economy that emerges when economic activity is in balance with the capacity of ocean ecosystems to support this activity and remains resilient and healthy”. Blue Economy encompasses ecological aspects and sustainability of the ocean along with economic aspects, unlike Ocean Economy that views the ocean solely as a mechanism for economic growth.

Undoubtedly, Malaysia’s oceans and marine resources provide enormous wealth and limitless social and economic prospects if it is tapped well.

However, in Blue Economy, it is important to understand and better manage the many aspects of oceanic sustainability, ranging from sustainable fisheries to ecosystem health.

The SIG on Blue Economy is an  effort to understand Malaysia’s ocean ecosystem as well as addressing challenges related to it. The SIG has worked together to produce the Position Paper on Blue Economy: Unlocking the Value of the Oceans.  

Through 10-10 MySTIE framework, the Position Paper identified 8 strategic sectors of Blue Economy that are important for the socioeconomic development in Malaysia:

The Position Paper addresses challenges and provides inputs in managing the nation’s marine and ocean resources for each strategic sector, to promote economic growth while benefitting the communities and industries that depend on the oceans for their livelihood.

The recommendations are critical to ensure effective management of ocean and marine resources in the region, in partnership with other countries in the ASEAN region. Sustainable management of the Blue Economy aligned to the 8R-NCBE (Planetary Health) philosophy will generate higher ROV from ocean resources and create more sustainable and higher-income jobs. These will improve the quality of life of many communities that are dependent on the oceans for their livelihood. 

Through the building of ecosystem for the 8 strategic sectors using 10-10 MySTIE, 8i and 8R NCBE principle, the Blue Economy growth trajectory estimation shows that the sector would contribute 31.5% of GDP by 2030 with cumulative net grain of RM 1.4 trillion from 2020 to 2030, compared to only 21.3% of GDP contribution if operating at status quo.

The proposed recommendation in this report is aligned with the development agenda outlined in the Shared Prosperity Vision 2030 and the 12^th Malaysia Plan to balance economic prosperity with planetary health considerations.

The uptake of recommendations by Governments and implementing agencies is important to ensure effective management of ocean and marine resources in the region.

The integration of 8R-NCBE (Nature-centric Blue Economy) philosophy form the basis for economic development whereby marine and coastal life are valued and respected. It can nurture a human population that recognises the potential threats to the country’s marine and coastal resources as well as providing knowledge to the community on the importance of sustainable marine biodiversity conservation practices.

Recommendations

• Government to formulate National Ocean Policy and Blue Economy Policy (Blue Economy Blueprint) basedon STIE to strengthen governance and provide direction for Blue Economy in Malaysia towards an integrated, effective and sustainable ecosystem by unravelling the potential of this sector.

• To strengthen the eight strategic sectors of Malaysian Blue Economy based on 8R-Nature-centric Blue Economy (8R-NCBE) philosophy towards value creation, socio-economic growth, and to be embedded in the Planetary Health Action Plan.

• To establish the RDICE Matching Fund Scheme for Blue Financing towards enhancing public and private participation in empowering Blue Economy.