Excerpt from allafrica.com
Seychelles’ 115 islands are an exotic ocean ecosystem of beaches, coral reefs, and unique plant and animal species. Concerned with the impacts of climate change, the country has committed to decarbonize by 2050.
As climate change threatens food security, livelihoods, sustainable and inclusive economic growth, countries with coastal blue carbon ecosystems are increasingly looking into the ocean for climate change and business solutions.
Angelique Pouponneau, CEO, Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust, says for these countries, “the blue economy, sectors dependent on healthy marine and coastal resources, is at the heart of their updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) submissions.”
Under the Paris Agreement, countries revise their NDCs every five years to cut greenhouse gas emissions to limit the earth’s temperature rise and commit to implementing solutions to adapt to the effects of climate change.
Seychelles made a most ambitious commitment in its NDC to decarbonize its economy entirely by 2050, making it one of the few developing countries to do so.
“Seychelles developed a national blue economy road map anchored on identifying sectors of the blue economy industry that can generate wealth and sustainable management of marine resources. Priority areas include aquaculture to help build resilience among local communities and accelerate sustainable development,” says Pouponneau in an interview with IPS, adding that sustainable fishing and building ocean-based enterprises are crucial to the success of this Indian Ocean archipelago.
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