Outcomes & Challenges of 3rd UN Ocean conference (UN-OC3)

Mains syllabus - GS-II:  Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and Agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

GS-III: Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment

Why in news?

Recently, the Third UN-Ocean conference held in Nice, France to discuss measures to conserve the oceans.

Why conservation of ocean is important?

• Oceans – It is a continuous body of salt water that is contained in enormous basins on Earth’s surface.
  • Examples: Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean.

• Wealth generator – Oceans produce wealth with an estimated annual worth of $1.5 trillion, making it the world’s seventh-largest economy.
• Producer of Oxygen – It generates 50% of the oxygen we need.
• Carbon sink - It absorbs 30% of all carbon dioxide emissions

• Heat absorber - It takes about 90% of excess energy added to the Earth’s by human activities.

What is UN Ocean Conference?

• Established in – 2017
• Objectives - To Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development.

• Participants – Heads of various nations, members from civil society, business, and science.

• Previous conferences- New York (2017), Lisbon (2022).

What are the outcomes of 3^rd UNOC?

• One Ocean Finance Facility – A blended finance tool to unlock funding from ocean dependent industries.
• Blue bonds – It is a contract between the borrower (the government, for instance) and the lender (investors), allowing the former to raise money from investors for ocean-friendly projects.
• Debt-for-nature swap – It involves purchasing foreign debt and converting it into local currency to fund conservation activities,
• Parametric insurance – It is a tool where payouts are triggered automatically when a specific event such as a heatwave, flood, or poor air quality — exceeded a predefined limit.
• Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) – It is public-private partnership launched in 2020 by UN members that aims to mobilize $500 million in grants and capital.
  • So far, GFCR-supported reef-positive solutions have received $87.47 million in funding.
• Business in Ocean –More than 80 companies from 25 countries endorsed the “Business in Ocean” call to action, pledging to integrate ocean risks into strategy.
• Nice Ocean Action Plan – It had been adopted, consisting of a political Declaration and numerous voluntary commitments.

What are the challenges associated with the pledges of 3^rd UNOC?

• Delay in launch - One Ocean Finance Facility will be launched only in 2028, two years before the SDG 14 deadline, which prompts skepticism over its ability to act in time.

• Debt crisis - People in 54 countries are currently living in financial crisis, thus issuing new bonds without addressing existing debt could exacerbate the problem.
• Oversight of foreign entities - Debt-for-nature swap can lead to oversight of foreign entities who can insert a set of conditionalities that prioritizes investor returns.
• Data insufficiency - Parametric insurance has potential giving out pre-agreed payouts based on measurable environmental triggers, But Underlying data is a biggest hurdle.
• Financial crunches - The fund is lower than what is believed could be achieved as per the “Ocean Finance for the Sus-tainable Ocean Economy” report released ahead of UNOC3.
• There is an estimated 92 %or $14.6 billion shortfall in annual funding to meet the 30x30 target.
• Decline in assistance - The official development assistance (ODA), fell by 7.1 % compared to 2023.
  • For insyance, in 2025, the US began to dismantle its aid program and the UK announced plans to reduce aid to 0.3 % of gross national income, against the required ODA of 0.7.

The official development assistance (ODA), is government aid that promotes and specifically targets the economic development and welfare of developing countries.

What lies ahead?

• We need sustainable solutions, capacity building and knowledge sharing in developing countries to make the ocean conservation a reality.
• There could be a multipronged strategy and science-driven ocean literacy for ocean conservation.

Quick Facts

Reference

Down to earth| Outcomes and Challenges of 3^rd UN Ocean Conference