President Akufo-Addo addressed the One Ocean Summit in France on Friday
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has described as worrying the country’s continuous dependent on fish import, which costs it about US$200 million annually. According to the President, the huge dependence on imported fish has arisen due to illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing activities in the country. To this end, the President says government is putting measures in place to deal with the situation.
Speaking at the One Ocean Summit in Brest, France, President Akufo-Addo explained that the health of the planet and the health of the peoples of the world are inextricably linked to the health of oceans.
“Seventy percent (70%) of the earth’s surface is covered by oceans, which account for the very origins of life, as we know it. The world’s oceans provide food and sustenance, mineral resources, energy, employment and livelihoods, transport and recreation. Acting as the lungs of the planet, oceans are responsible for some fifty percent (50%) of the oxygen produced on the planet, and absorb twenty-five percent (25%) of carbon dioxide emissions resulting from human activity,” the President said.
Decisive action
According to him, this God-given asset faces an existential threat, largely, from pollution and over-exploitation. He therefore called on the world to take decisive actions now to safeguard the ocean’s capacity to regenerate, and to continue to deliver substantial economic, environmental, and social value for human development.
“To curb the menace of illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing activities, a National Plan of Action is being implemented. Components of this Plan include fish catch certification, reactivation and installation of vessel monitoring systems (VMS), automatic identification system (AIS) on vessels, port and beach inspections, and sea patrols. We support the principle of a global convention in this area,” the President said.
He added: “Together with our neighbours, the Republics of Togo and Benin, a pact has been signed to implement a joint fisheries’ observer programme, as part of efforts to ensure that safe, secure, and legal fisheries are maintained across the Gulf of Guinea. We are completing work on our Ocean Governance Study, and putting in place the requisite structures and processes to ensure that we complete our Sustainable Ocean Plan by 2025, as prescribed by the High-Level Panel on the Ocean Economy on 20th December 2021.”
Blue economy
President Akufo-Addo disclosed that Government is in the process of ratifying the 2012 Cape Town Agreement on Fishing Vessel Safety, adding: “I am expectant that Ghana will shortly deposit her instrument of accession. This will mark a major milestone in our endeavour to build a sustainable blue economy.”
Ecuador, Germany, Vietnam and Ghana, with support from the UN Environment Programme, last year, successfully convened the Ministerial Conference on Plastic Pollution and Marine Litter in Geneva, Switzerland toward addressing the vexed issue of marine litter and plastic pollution.
The Ministerial Statement on Global Plastics Agreement, an outcome of the Conference, recognized “the need for further commitment and actions across the life cycle of plastics to address marine litter and microplastics, including through a circular economy approach.”
President Akufo-Addo reiterated that Ghana “shares in the vision of a New Plastics Economy, and will sign onto the initiative”.
He urged world leaders to commit to a greater course of action to support the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG 14). The goal demands that the world conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development.
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