Operationalising the blue economy for a resilient and sustainable economic transition in Pacific small island developing states : the case of Fiji and deep sea mining

Abstract

According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Synthesis Report titled Green Economy in a Blue World, the oceans are appropriately compared to a bounty for humanity because they give us food, oxygen, and means of subsistence (UNEP, 2012). Due to the fluid nature of the ocean, it is difficult to separate the ocean, coastal, and marine industries from their operating environments of watersheds and ecosystems in order to harmonize traditional economic operations with sustainable economic values (Smith-Godfrey, 2016). The United Nations (UN) Conventions on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other international conventions from the International Maritime Organization (IMO), to name a few, govern the ocean spaces; these have been acceded to and approved by nations all over the world, making the oceans subjected to multilayered, multidimensional regulatory frameworks. The laws, rules, and initiatives of the relevant nations, regions, and continents are then used to nationalize and localize this system. Many countries are considering parallel regulation and institution building to complement these regime-related responsibilities with commercial activities and government value approaches to achieve a clear, united, and dimension of such approaches' efficacy (SmithGodfrey, 2016). The United Nations General Assembly declared the decade of 2021–2030 as the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development in resolution 72/73 in 2017, in response to the first World Ocean Assessment of the United Nations released in 2016 and its findings on the limited time left to manage the ocean sustainably. This was done to ensure that ocean science is at the core of sustainable ocean management (UNESCO, 2021). This is especially crucial for Small Island Developing States (SIDS), which are independent small island states with oversight over a considerable portion of sea, often much bigger than their land areas and crucial to foster their economic development. SIDS were very instrumental in the formulation and the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goal 14, Life below water, for the 2030 Agenda, with the narrative now championed and flaunting the term of Big Ocean States or Boss, in reference to SIDS (Tilot, et al., 2021). A concept that has gained considerable status and adoption in recent times, especially in SIDS, is that of the Blue Economy (BE), which can act as a key determinant for a resilient and sustainable economic development in SIDS (UNEP, 2012). However, doubts remain as certain operational activities included in the concept of BE, such as Deep-Sea Mining (DSM), is a sustainable and reliable form of operationalizing the BE, given its uncertain socio-economic and environmental consequences of these activities on the overall development of countries. Furthermore, there is still much uncertainty about the impacts that DSM can have on local communities, possibly representing a constraint and a damaging activity. These DSM activities are often proposed by relatively big Multinational companies, with strong lobbying powers, supported by governments of large economies. This research will test the hypothesis that DSM can be considered as a new form of neo-post colonial activity that possibly exploits resources at the advantage of external actors, rather than promoting local resilient and sustainable economic development. It does it by first discussing the concept generally in SIDS, to then present a case study of SIDS: in this case of Fiji. It will first use Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) to address the question on BE and DSM in SIDS and then zoom in through a Thematic Analysis on national policies of Fiji. Also, a further objective of this dissertation is to strongly consider the involvement of local communities and local actors, active in the territory, as a key element that can support the case for building a sustainable economic transition. […]