By Sherrica Thompson
Staff Writer
#Anguilla, February 24, 2023 – The British overseas territory of Anguilla is the latest member to join the United Kingdom’s Ocean Conservation Programme Blue Belt Initiative. The announcement was made by the Minister of Sustainability, Innovation and the Environment, Quincia Gumbs Marie, at a Blue Belt ceremony during the official visit of the UK minister for the Overseas Territories, Lord Goldsmith.
In speaking at the ceremony, Minister Gumbs-Marie said:
“By joining the Blue Belt Initiative, Anguilla is demonstrating our commitment to improve the governance of marine and coastal ecosystems, achieve equal economic opportunities and restore and conserve biodiversity.
“This also signals a major step forward in the decade-old aspiration to invest in Anguilla’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which is crucial to the economy of island states and showcases how Anguilla can maximise the benefits of sustainably managed oceans. Our management efforts will include monitoring illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing in Anguillian waters, training our stakeholders, and support for the establishment of sustainable fisheries.”
The Blue Belt Initiative seeks to steer progress by addressing the greatest challenges facing the world’s oceans today; these include coastal management, biodiversity loss, and plastic pollution.
According to the Anguilla Tourist Board, the country’s participation in this initiative will seek to respond to marine challenges and manage their coastal and marine resources to spur economic growth and reduce poverty, while adapting to the effects of climate change.
Turks and Caicos as a British overseas territory in 2022 announced it too would align coastal management with the Blue Belt program.
