VICTORIA, Seychelles — Minister for Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment Flavien Joubert has reaffirmed Seychelles’ global leadership in building an inclusive and sustainable blue economy, in an intervention delivered on the country’s behalf at the Third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice. Speaking to a packed hall, Mr Joubert articulated a strategic, forward-looking vision for sustainable development, marine conservation and inclusive ocean governance, and called on all nations to act with urgency.
‘Safeguarding the ocean is not a choice, it is a matter of survival,’ Mr Joubert declared, underlining that for a country that is 99% ocean, the health of the marine environment is inseparable from its economic and cultural future. He pointed to the Seychelles blue economy agenda, which has designated 30% of the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone as marine protected areas, a commitment made possible through the world’s first sovereign blue bond.
Seychelles has also become the first African country and the fourth globally to ratify the High Seas Treaty, known as the BBNJ Agreement, and has integrated ocean literacy into the national school curriculum. The minister urged the international community to support mutualistic partnerships and the proposed Nice Ocean Action Plan as a practical, action-oriented blueprint, including a 30% ocean protection target by 2030, ratification of the BBNJ Agreement and scalable blue finance solutions. ‘Seychelles stands ready to act and we invite the world to stand with us,’ Mr Joubert concluded.
