The United Nations has decried the lack of investment in protecting the ocean economy, which is valued at $1.5 trillion yearly. According to the international organisation, oceans are critical to global trade, food security, climate regulation and employment for coastal communities. However, national funding to safeguard these vital functions falls significantly short of the estimated $175 billion required each year.
This is one of the major issues raised at the commemoration of World Ocean Day 2025 with the theme, ‘Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us’. To address this growing financial gap in Nigeria, stakeholders have urged the Federal Government to unlock the vast economic potential of its coastline through strategic investments, innovation and environmental stewardship.
The Dean of the Faculty at City University, Cambodia, Prof. Alfred Oniye, outlined a comprehensive blueprint to transform Nigeria’s ocean resources into Africa’s leading blue economy, to generate over $100 billion yearly, create millions of jobs and preserve the nation’s marine ecosystems.
Oniye emphasised that Nigeria can “turn the tide” by taking bold, coordinated action across several fronts, which include, implementing stronger ocean governance laws to combat illegal fishing, pollution, and coastal degradation; promoting sustainable fisheries and aquaculture to enhance food security and exports; and investing in marine renewable energy, such as wave, tidal, and offshore wind power to accelerate the country’s clean energy transition.
Other key strategies include fostering eco-tourism and sustainable coastal development to attract international visitors and generate employment in hospitality and leisure; modernising shipping and port infrastructure to position Nigeria as a leading maritime hub in Africa; and launching clean ocean initiatives that convert marine waste into revenue through recycling and waste-to-energy programs.
Oniye further recommended harnessing blue carbon and climate finance by preserving ecosystems such as mangroves and seagrass to access the global carbon credit market.
He also advocated for investments in marine biotechnology and pharmaceuticals to open new frontiers in health and industrial innovation, enhancing maritime security to combat piracy and smuggling, and fostering international collaboration with global experts and investors to drive new investments.
“Nigeria’s vast coastline is more than just waves and water, it’s an untapped goldmine for economic growth, job creation, and environmental sustainability,” Oniye stated.
Similarly, the founder of the Blue Economy Academy, Ubong Essien, urged nations to recognise and harness the immense economic potential of their marine resources, from food to fuel, ports to prosperity and biodiversity to blue jobs.
Essien highlighted Nigeria’s extensive coastline as a “corridor of opportunity” that could be transformed into a thriving hub for blue economic activities such as sustainable fisheries, maritime transport, marine tourism and ocean-based renewable energy.
Through education, innovation and inclusive policies, he noted, Nigeria could position itself as a regional leader in ocean-based economic development.
Essien also called on stakeholders to view the blue economy as a strategic frontier for national growth, especially as the country pursues economic diversification to achieve sustainable development, job creation, and long-term resilience.
Meanwhile, UN agencies recently launched the One Ocean Finance initiative at the Blue Economy Finance Forum in Monaco. The initiative aims to unlock billions of dollars in new financing from ocean-dependent industries and blue economy sectors.
The Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Achim Steiner, emphasised the urgent need to redesign ocean finance, warning that the ocean is currently “undervalued, underfunded, and over-exploited”.
Steiner noted that One Ocean Finance is mobilising public and private capital to restore marine ecosystems and deliver justice to the coastal communities that rely on them.
