Marine Spatial Planning of the Western Indian Ocean Blue Economy

Given the coastal and environmental opportunities and challenge facing the Western Indian Ocean (WIO), it makes sense to better integrate existing legal and management tools, and look for creative and novel solutions to existing problems (UNEP-Nairobi Convention & WIOMSA 2015). Economic activities that take place in the ocean space, receiving goods and services from ocean activities and ocean activity (to the ocean) has been recognised as a major contributor to national economies (Park et al. 2014). This contribution (formally recognised or not) forms part of the ocean economy of countries. There is increasing emphasis on the sustainable use of ocean and coastal resources in what has become known as the “blue” or sustainable ocean economy (hereafter the Blue Economy). The Blue Economy is a recent and developing paradigm, and the transition from an ocean economy (as a purely economic construct) to a Blue Economy (sustainable ocean economy) will be a complex, long-term undertaking. Even so, the ocean will become an economic force this century (Economist Intelligence Unit 2015). The Blue Economy is globally (UNEP et al. 2010; Hoegh-Guldberg & et al. 2015), continentally (UNECA 2016; ECORYS et al. 2012; Commission of the European Communities 2007; African Union 2012) and in the WIO (UNCTAD 2014; Mohanty et al. 2015; Kelleher 2015) promoted as the “right and responsible way” to secure and maintain benefit from coastal and ocean resources. There is also a growing awareness of the Blue Economy within Contracting Parties to the Nairobi Convention. The Government of Seychelles has adopted the Blue Economy Concept1, Mauritius is investing in the Ocean Economy 2 and the Republic of South Africa has developed Operation Phakisa3 to unlock the economic potential of the ocean in a sustainable manner.