Mozambique and Portugal must strengthen cooperation in the field of oceans
“Both the President of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi, and the Minister of the Sea, Augusta Maita, showed their commitment to helping at the Oceans Conference”, says Ricardo Serrão Santos to Lusa.
The Portuguese official was speaking on the sidelines of the 2nd International Conference Crescendo Azul, centered on the oceans and which took place in Vilanculos, in Inhambane province, southern Mozambique.
For Ricardo Serrão Santos, the United Nations Ocean Conference, to be co-organized by Portugal and Kenya, will awaken the interest of any country that has the protection of biodiversity on its development agenda, a fight that must be fought collectively.
“The commitment to the agenda of 30% of marine protected areas by 2030 is, after all, a common objective” and is included in the objectives of the two countries, added.
Ricardo Serrão Santos recalled that Mozambique and Portugal already have a cooperation agreement that covers areas such as maritime security and training.
“A commission is being created to monitor this bilateral agreement and, therefore, this is going forward. This is not a start, but rather a continuation of what was already happening”, stressed the Portuguese official.
The 2nd edition of the International Conference “Crescendo Azul” took place on Thursday and today, bringing together more than 1,500 people in Vilanculos, in Inhambane province, with the objective of promoting an economy based on the oceans, debating mechanisms for the protection of biodiversity in Mozambique.
The event was under the motto “Investing in the health of the ocean is investing in the future of the planet”, and Mozambique has a coastal zone of about 2,700 kilometers facing the Indian Ocean.
In addition to an intervention in the opening session, on Thursday, Ricardo Serrão Santos was the speaker today, on the last day of the event, where he presented the theme “On the way to the Second Conference of the Oceans, Lisbon 2022”.