Summary

Online Regional MSP Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean - Hosted by IOCARIBE The first edition of the online Regional MSPforums, is co-funded by the Government of Sweden, and the IOC of UNESCO.

The IOC-UNESCO is working on promoting ecosystem-based management through MSP. This work is also a major contribution to the UN Decade of Ocean Sciences for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), adopted by the 72nd UN General Assembly on 5 December 2017. To support this, the IOC-UNESCO has held different international, regional, and national events to focus on solutions to properly manage the ocean.

In order to build mutual understanding on MSP and create a community of practice, the Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the European Commission (DG MARE) and IOC-UNESCO created the International MSPforum. From 2018 to 2020, four editions were organised; and from 2022, the institutions expect to bring back this forum as an annual event. The 5th International MSPforum will be organised on 21 November 2022 in Barcelona, Spain.

The purpose of the Forum aims to amplify these efforts at regional level, supporting the creation of three online Regional MSPforums (Latin America and The Caribbean, Africa, and Asia and Pacific) together with IOC's Sub Commissions (i.e., IOCARIBE, IOCAFRICA and WESTPAC) and other regional partners and initiatives working on MSP, such as the GEF IW:LEARN project  (executed by IOC-UNESCO and implemented by UNDP and UNEP) and Regional Seas Conventions. The Regional MSPforum will be a mechanism for IOC-UNESCO, together with partners, to act in the regions which need technical support, including Large Marine Ecosystems (LME), thus reinforcing existing transboundary management frameworks at regional level. Looking for synergies between MSP-related programs within and beyond IOC-UNESCO is key to support Member States in a more efficient way.

The Regional MSPforums will support a dialogue process on MSP, including its links to the priority areas of the MSProadmap. Obtaining better mutual understanding of marine spatial planning processes undertaken within specific regional contexts is an opportunity to learn from each other's experience.

The first on-line Regional MSP Forum for Latin America and the Caribbean will take place on Monday and Tuesday December 12 and 13, 2022 (two morning sessions 09:00 11:00) hosted by IOCARIBE. Link for registration, and annotated agenda, will be provided shortly. 

The first edition of the online Regional MSPforums, is co-funded by the Government of Sweden, and the IOC of UNESCO.

 Link to register: https://bit.ly/3uh8Z4j