Sri Lanka’s history and future is inevitably linked to the ocean that surrounds the island nation. This fact is often forgotten and overlooked by Sri Lankan policy-makers, officials and the public. Many Sri Lankans conveniently forget that we are indeed islanders and have limited their conscience and focus to matters of land. 

We are an island nation in the Indian Ocean, comprising about 1,340 km coastline (mainland) and an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) which is about seven times the size of our landmass. Sri Lanka is also responsible for a wider Search and Rescue Region (SAR), for which we are the first responder in line with international law, but holds no sovereign claims. Today, Sri Lanka is also seeking rights to a broader continental shelf region. While there has been much talk about a ‘blue economy’ by many while in government and opposition, little tangible progress has been made in building awareness, capabilities and specialist knowledge which is needed to understand, and manage our ocean domain.  

Over the last decade, much has been said and debated about how the ongoing geopolitical contest in the Indian Ocean impacts the island. Multiple marine, and maritime disasters, and energy/food security crises of the last few years, controversial visits of foreign marine survey vessels, regional and international focus on Sri Lanka involving maritime security should have given cause for Sri Lankans to take the ocean around us seriously.  Sri Lanka is today the Chairperson of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), which also underscores the need for Sri Lankans and our policy-makers to better understand the ocean around us and to give it the due priority.

One of the key challenges Sri Lanka faces when it comes to understanding the region around us, our linkages to the world, and how we can navigate the challenges and opportunities in the Indian Ocean is our collective lack of understanding of the oceans and their marine and maritime dynamic. For Sri Lanka to effectively navigate the turbulent geopolitical and trade and economic waves and tides in the Indian Ocean, the island needs to have a better understanding of our domains, which is only possible with the right kind of expertise being available, building indigenous capacity to explore and study it. Sri Lanka also needs to be part of and be involved in the regional and international regulatory framework on oceans to benefit from the protections, navigate the challenges and reap the benefits for our maritime domain.

Sri Lanka last year welcomed the conclusion of negotiations on an agreement to enhance the international legal regime concerning the conservation of marine biological diversity in the high seas. The agreement covers almost two thirds of the ocean that lies in areas beyond national jurisdictions, and provides a framework for establishing marine protected areas, for environmental impact assessments and to share the marine genetic resources of the high seas. The treaty is a powerful instrument to create large protected areas on the high seas beyond national jurisdiction (offshore 200 nautical miles or 370 kilometres from the coastlines), where marine life can not only recover from overfishing and marine pollution, but also to give it an opportunity to thrive. A healthy ocean is vital to protect the climate and support coastal ecosystems. This is especially important to us since Sri Lanka is increasingly vulnerable to climate change-related issues. The treaty also helps support the livelihoods of millions of people around the world, many of who make up coastal communities, including fishers, seafarers and everyone who depends on it for trade, food and energy and transportation. When the agreement was made, Sri Lanka welcomed the commitment by developed countries under the Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ) agreement to fund capacity building projects which will assist developing countries to undertake conservation measures. However, Sri Lanka is yet to ratify the BBNJ agreement, one year on. Under the United Nations system, a minimum of 60 countries need to ratify the agreement for it to enter into force.

Despite changes to the islands political landscape, it is imperative that the new Government, which will emerge from the Parliamentary Election this week, expedite efforts to ratify the Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdictions agreement, and take leadership in the region to advocate for other nations to ratify it as well.  A well-governed, fair and efficient use and management of the oceans around Sri Lanka, and the living and non-living resources in the domain will be a vital component of the island nation’s future. Let us not let our lawmakers overlook such an important matter, and have them address it with urgency.