Blue economy is an emerging concept which encourages better stewardship of the water bodies such as the oceans, seas, lakes and rivers and the resources therein.

Blue economy aims at improving human wellbeing and social equity while reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.

Blue economy goes beyond ocean economy that is solely for businesses such as shipping  ,commercial fishing ,oil ,gas ,mineral mining among other activities but instead it supports  the  sustainable goal about life below water that requires an action that  sustainably manages and protects the water bodies with the life in it .The  world’s ocean is essential to life on our planet. This is because it is the largest source of oxygen and protein and absorbs around a quarter of our carbon dioxide emissions

Focusing on Kenya, its coastal and marine environment is endowed with rich natural resources which are of immense social and cultural value to the nation. These resources have massive economical potential. To harness this potential, the Kenyan government created a presidential Blue economy Task Force in 2017 with an objective of prioritizing the sustainable use of ocean and lakes resources for economic growth, livelihoods and jobs and ocean ecosystem health. The taskforce oversees interventions to achieve these objectives in sectors such as fisheries and aquaculture, maritime transport, culture and tourism

Waste and plastic pollution has been a threat to the blue economy that the country has adopted in the recent years and this pollution is also a threat to food security, public health and marine life. Kenya’s recent ban on single use plastic is an important and big step towards embracing the blue economy

. The country is also working to ensure responsible and sustainable fishing-a sector where millions of people depend on as a source of livelihood. Kenya launched a new Coast Guard in 2018 for reasons of ending over fishing, piracy and illegal fishing. This would ensure sustainable fisheries resources through strengthening ocean governance and environmental protection. Implementation of these and similar progressive actions from Kenya and partners can help the country and region development vibrant and resilient economies that are protective of the environment. As the Kenyan president, President Kenyatta noted, ‘unless our environmental riches are protected, there can be no lasting prosperity for any of us’

REFERENCE

http//www.marineregions.org

https//thecommonwealth.org

www.blueeconomyconference.go.ke/wp-content/uploads

Sustainable Blue Economy Conference Technical document Review Committee.

‘’Report on the Global Sustainable Blue Economy Conference ’Blue Economy Conference, Dec.2018