Indian Mission to ASEAN
Jakarta
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Fourth ASEAN-India Workshop on Blue Economy
New Delhi, 15-16 December 2022
Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India in partnership with Coordinating Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Investment, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Indonesia; in collaboration with the ASEAN-India Centre (AIC), Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), and the National Maritime Foundation (NMF) jointly organised the 4th ASEAN-India Workshop on the ‘Blue Economy’ on the theme “Advancing Partnership for Sustainability” on 15-16 December, 2022 in New Delhi.
2. The Joint Statement on ASEAN-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (adopted on 12 November, 2022 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia) envisions Blue Economy and Maritime Cooperation as the key areas for cooperation.
3. Mr. Saurabh Kumar, Secretary (East) addressed the workshop as India and ASEAN take steps to enhance Blue Economy cooperation as Comprehensive Strategic Partners.
4. In his Keynote address, Secretary (East) highlighted the importance of sustainable development, connectivity, Science and Technology, and safety and security to further this cooperation.
5. In order to facilitate an in- depth discussion on the Blue Economy, with the aim of identifying specific areas where ASEAN and India can meaningfully cooperate and work together, the conference held four sessions:
Session I : Sustainable Exploitation and Harnessing of Marine Resources
Session II: Combating Marine Debris
Session III: Promoting Coastal and Marine Tourism
Session IV: Sustainable Maritime Connectivity
6. The workshop welcomed the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (AOIP) and ASEAN’s proactive initiative to establish an ASEAN Network for Combatting IUU Fishing (AN-IUU) and the contribution that the adoption of the Bangkok Declaration on Combatting Marine Debris and the ASEAN Framework of Action on Marine Debris will have on efforts in this regard.
7. Discussions also explored useful capacity-building activities, guest lectures and exchange of visits to discuss further, specific areas of cooperation in the context of the Blue Economy between ASEAN and India, through related agencies such as the National Maritime Foundation, the Phuket Marine Biological Center, the ASEAN Center for Sustainable Development Studies and Dialogue (ACSDSD) and the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Centre).
8. Previously, three ASEAN-India workshops on Blue Economy have been held as under:
(i)1st Conference on 24-25 November, 2017 in Nha Trang, Vietnam; co-hosted by India and Vietnam;
(ii)2nd Conference on 18 July, 2018 in New Delhi, India; co-hosted by India and Vietnam; and,
(iii)3rd Conference on 12 September, 2019 in Bangkok, Thailand; co-hosted by India and Thailand.
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