(NEWS) BBNJ Symposium 2025 - Satellite Event

March

2025

BBNJ Symposium 2025 - Satellite Event

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From 18-20 February, the World Maritime University (WMU)-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute (GOI) and team for the Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic participated in the BBNJ Symposium 2025 in Singapore, hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Singapore and National University of Singapore.

On 19 February, the WMU team members contributed to the main programme sessions including Associate Professor Zhen Sun, who moderated a panel on Cooperation with Relevant Instruments, Frameworks and Bodies (IFBs) under the BBNJ Agreement. Further, WMU PhD Graduate, Dr. Kahlil Hassanali, participated as a speaker in Panel 5 on Subsidiary Bodies, presenting some thoughts on the terms of reference and modalities for operation of the scientific and technical body established under the Agreement.

On 20 February, the GOI co-hosted a high-level hybrid session on the ratification of the BBNJ Agreement from a SIDS perspective during the official satellite event programme. Distinguished experts reflected on the Agreement’s ratification, financing and capacity development challenges and opportunities. This timely discussion was held within the framework of the Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic Programme (the BBNJ Clinic), generously funded by Ireland.

The hybrid session, titled “Ratification of the BBNJ Agreement from a SIDS Perspective: The Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic Roundtable” focused on issues pertaining to the ratification and implementation of the BBNJ Agreement and was co-hosted with the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission, the Government of Grenada, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The first part of the session was chaired by Professor Ronán Long, Director of the GOI, and examined how the Ireland and WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic Programme aims to support Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and (Least Developed Countries) LDCs in addressing the complexities of ratifying and implementing the Agreement. WMU speakers included Associate Professor Zhen Sun, Associate Research Officer Dr. Ríán Derrig, and WMU alumnus Dr. Kahlil Hassanali, Senior Research Officer at the Institute of Maritime Affairs, Trinidad & Tobago. The speakers provided an overview of the BBNJ Agreement and the BBNJ Clinic Programme, highlighting its objectives and expected outputs in supporting Agreement ratification efforts in the first two years of the programme and in the implementation process thereafter.

The second part of the session featured an engaging roundtable discussion with distinguished experts on key themes, including ratification, financing, and capacity development. Moderated by Dr. Zhen Sun, featured roundtable contributors included Ambassador Jerry Enoe, Special Envoy for Ocean for the Government of Grenada, Mrs. Susanna DeBeauville-Scott, Programme Director for the Sustainable Ocean Management Programme of the OECS Commission – and experts on ratification, capacity development and financing including Mr. Torsten Thiele, Founder of the Global Ocean Trust and Member of the World Commission on Protected Areas, IUCN WCPA Sustainable Finance Specialist Group, Mr. Bingzhuo Li, Legal Officer for the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, and Mrs. Leneka Scott, Caribbean Regional Coordinator for the High Seas Alliance.

The satellite event attracted a diverse audience, both onsite and online, including delegates from governments, UN agencies, international and regional organizations, legal professionals, representatives of industries, civil society and the research community, as well as law students and WMU Alumni from Asia-Pacific, South Asia, the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe.

In closing remarks, Professor Ronán Long emphasized the critical role of the BBNJ Agreement in ensuring sustainable ocean governance and the need to prioritize its ratification, highlighting the importance of capacity development initiatives by the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS), the High Seas Alliance (HSA) and the Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic in supporting SIDS and LDCs in this process. Professor Long proposed co-hosting a SIDS oriented BBNJ symposium with partners, under the auspices of the BBNJ Clinic.

About the WMU-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute
‍The World Maritime University (WMU)-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute (GOI) is an independent focal point for the ocean science-policy-law-industry-society interface where policymakers, the scientific community, regulators, industry actors, academics, and representatives of civil society meet to discuss how best to manage and use ocean spaces and their resources in accordance with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Institute was inaugurated in May 2018 and made possible through generous support from The Nippon Foundation of Japan, the Governments of Sweden, Canada, and Germany, as well as the City of Malmö.

About the BBNJ Clinic Programme
‍The Ireland and WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic is dedicated to supporting Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and coastal Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in their efforts to ratify and implement the BBNJ Agreement. Effective and prompt implementation of the BBNJ Agreement is crucial for ocean sustainability and conservation and addressing global inequalities in access to ocean resources. SIDS, characterized as ‘large ocean states’ due to their geographical features and interconnection with and knowledge of ocean ecosystems, as well as coastal LDCs, are among the most significant beneficiaries of the Agreement and among the most important actors in contemporary ocean affairs. However, these States can face capacity and resource challenges in implementing the BBNJ Agreement. The Programme aims to fulfill both practical capacity development and hands-on educational mandates. WMU-GOI researchers and external experts, including the lead negotiators of the BBNJ intergovernmental conference, will lead the consultation process facilitated by the Clinic, and facilitate ratification and implementation procedures undertaken by legal advisors, government officials, and relevant stakeholders from SIDS and coastal LDCs.

For more information about the Ireland WMU-GOI BBNJ Clinic Programme visit: https://bbnjclinic.wmu.se/

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