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Strengthening the <strong>G20</strong> system<br />
www.paulmartin.ca<br />
Paul Martin<br />
Former Prime Minister of Canada<br />
multilateral approach to dealing with it, the<br />
ocean remains one of the least-developed<br />
regions on Earth. Yet, in so many ways, it<br />
represents the new economic frontier.<br />
The World Wildlife Fund estimates that<br />
the ocean economy is the seventh largest,<br />
valued at $24 trillion. The Organisation for<br />
Economic Co-operation and Development<br />
(OECD) predicts that by 2030 many oceanbased<br />
industries will have the potential<br />
to outperform the growth of the global<br />
economy as a whole.<br />
ILLUSTRATION: STUDIO NIPPOLDT<br />
Q Given the necessity to build on<br />
Sustainable Development Goal 14, which<br />
calls for the conservation and sustainable<br />
use of the oceans, seas and marine<br />
resources, what is required?<br />
A Several advocates have proposed<br />
designing a blue economy sustainable<br />
development framework as soon as it is<br />
feasible. It would ensure that investment<br />
related to developing and conserving<br />
ocean and coastal resources are done in<br />
ways that allow for a diversity of activities,<br />
from traditional ocean sectors to new<br />
businesses focused on ocean health – all<br />
managed in a coordinated way, within a<br />
comprehensive framework of ecosystembased<br />
management.<br />
The OECD recently said that traditional<br />
maritime industries are innovating well, but<br />
emerging ocean industries are attracting<br />
a lot of attention. Those include offshore<br />
wind, tidal and wave energy, offshore<br />
aquaculture, cruise tourism, maritime<br />
surveillance and marine biotechnology.<br />
Furthermore, new technologies are<br />
developed every day that make<br />
it increasingly feasible and<br />
economically viable to tap ocean<br />
resources, fuelling the search for vast<br />
areas of global importance such as<br />
food and pharmaceutical security.<br />
I believe the <strong>G20</strong> has an<br />
opportunity that should not be<br />
missed, an opportunity to work<br />
towards transforming a global<br />
challenge into a global gain,<br />
reviving a sick ocean by creating<br />
a new economic domain. The <strong>G20</strong><br />
should provide the momentum<br />
now that is required to get the<br />
blue economy underway. <strong>G20</strong><br />
G7<strong>G20</strong>.com September 2016 • <strong>G20</strong> China: The Hangzhou Summit 237
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