Workshop on Fostering Cooperation to Promote the Sustainable Development of Africa’s Deep Seabed Resources
16 May 2019 - 18 May 2019
Pretoria, South Africa
INFORMATION NOTE | AGENDA | PARTICIPANTS | PRESENTATIONS | PHOTOS | WORKSHOP REPORT
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) co-hosted a second workshop in the context of the Africa’s Deep-Seabed Resources (ADSR) project, in partnership with the Government of the Republic of South Africa at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, in Pretoria from 16 to 18 May 2019.
Held over three days, the workshop aims to foster international and regional cooperation to promote the sustainable development of Africa’s deep seabed resources in support of Africa’s Blue Economy by bringing together key stakeholders including official representatives of Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sao Tome & Principe, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe; as well as African experts law of the sea and mining issues.
If the primary objective is to raise awareness among African decision-makers about the importance of sustainable development activities on Africa’s continental shelf and in the adjacent international seabed area, this workshop will also provide a unique opportunity for participants to discuss capacity-building strategies that could help African States benefit fully from their Blue Economies, particularly regarding increased participation in deep-seabed exploration activities.
This is the second ADSR workshop to be held as part of ISA’s Voluntary Commitment to ‘Foster cooperation to promote the sustainable development of Africa’s deep seabed resources in support of Africa’s Blue Economy,’ registered in partnership with the African Minerals Development Centre of the Africa Union at the 2017 UN Ocean Conference (#OceanAction16374) and which has since received financial support from the Government of Norway.
Under the ADSR project, five workshops will be held between 2019-2020, one in each African sub-region. The first workshop was held in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire in October 2018.
Attendance at this workshop will be by invitation only.
For more information about ISA’s Voluntary Commitment and the ADSR project visit: bit.ly/OceanAction16374
For enquiries, please contact:
Marie Bourrel-McKinnon, Senior Policy Officer and Special Assistant to the Secretary-General, Executive Office of the Secretary-General,International Seabed Authority (mbourrel@isa.org.jm)