Adoption of the Yaoundé Declaration on the Sustainable Blue Economy

Cameroon hosted the first international conference on the sustainable blue economy in the Gulf of Guinea, which took place from July 9 to 10, 2025. This event concluded with the adoption of the Yaoundé Declaration, which aims to promote regional cooperation and transparent governance for a sustainable blue economy.

The signatories of the declaration commended Cameroon for hosting this high-level conference, highlighting the importance of the Gulf of Guinea as a rich marine ecosystem, essential for livelihoods, food security, and economic development. They also highlighted the need to strengthen regional cooperation and accelerate the implementation of global frameworks such as:

• The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF)
• The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
• Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement

The Declaration also reaffirms the Yaoundé Code of Conduct (2013) and highlights the importance of artisanal fisheries and blue carbon ecosystems.

Participants recognized the major challenges facing the Gulf of Guinea, including overfishing, ecosystem degradation, piracy, and illegal fishing. They called for improved regional coordination, transparency, and the inclusion of women, youth, and coastal communities in ocean governance.

Sustainable Ocean Plans (SOPs) have been identified as essential tools for integrating ocean priorities into national development agendas, with an ambitious target of conserving and managing at least 30% of marine areas by 2030.

The Yaoundé Declaration contains several important commitments:

1. Sustainable Ocean Management : Develop and implement PODs to manage 100% of ocean areas by 2030.
2. Combating illegal fishing : Strengthening surveillance and international cooperation to combat IUU fishing.
3. Maritime Security : Supporting Yaoundé's architecture to combat piracy and environmental crimes.
4. Transparency and governance : Establish digital vessel registers and publish data on licenses and quotas.
5. Financing and inclusion : Call for increased sustainable financing and public-private partnerships.
6. Capacity building : Create a regional center of excellence in Yaoundé for training on the blue economy.
7. Ocean Observation : Improving ocean observation systems and sharing data openly.

The signatories of the Declaration also called on the United Nations and the international community to support these priorities and participate in the development of a model law for the sustainable blue economy. They expressed their vision of 100% sustainable ocean management by 2030.

Djamiou ABOUDOU