Ratification of the BBNJ Agreement from a SIDS Perspective

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On 20  February, the Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic team will deliver a hybrid session on the ratification of the BBNJ Agreement from the Caribbean SIDS perspective as part of the official satellite events at the BBNJ Symposium 2025 in Singapore. Participants will include Symposium experts and relevant stakeholders within the BBNJ realm. This event will be co-hosted by the World Maritime University’s WMU-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute, Ireland, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States Commission (OECS), the Government of Grenada, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), under the framework of the Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic Programme, funded by Irish Aid.

Ratification and implementation of the BBNJ Agreement by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and coastal Least Developed Countries (LDCs) is crucial due to their large ocean jurisdictions and dependency on the ocean, as well as their contributions to the successful conclusion of the new instrument. Moreover, it is key to realizing the sustainability, conservation, and redistributive aims of the BBNJ Agreement. Processes of ratification and implementation will create resource and capacity challenges for these States, but also present great opportunities for conservation and sustainable use and development in the era of the triple planetary crisis, which refers to the three main interlinked issues that humanity currently faces: climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss. 

This satellite event will discuss how the Ireland & WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic is intended to respond to these challenges, as well as the implications of the BBNJ Agreement for SIDS and LDCs. It will also showcase the novel clinical model being implemented through the Clinic, and the progress made by SIDS in ratifying the BBNJ Agreement.

Thursday 20 February 2025
12:45 - 14:45 (SST)

• Onsite in the Nutmeg Conference Room - Orchard Hotel, Singapore
• Virtually

To register for the Symposium and ONSITE participation in this satellite event, click here.

Register for ONLINE participation for the satellite event, click here.

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