BEFF and UNOC3: two sides of the same Global Commitment to the Oceans.
- M Abti
- 7 hours ago
- 5 min read
Monaco is preparing to host an unprecedented international event to promote a more sustainable use of ocean resources in order to trigger economic growth while preserving marine biodiversity and the various related ecosystems. The financial sector is increasingly supporting the cause providing a set of tools, including blue bonds and loans which are attracting a larger number of investors, financial institutions, and issuers at global scale. The Blue Economy and Finance Forum - BEFF - will be held at Grimaldi Forum on the 7th and the 8th June 2025, being acknowledged as UN Ocean Conference Special Event.
The BEFF, which starts in a week, will inaugurate the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3), taking place in Nice from the 9th to the 13th June 2025, prompting a structured approach to active massive funding initiatives to restore ocean habitats and accelerate the transition to a fully sustainable and regenerative Blue Economy.
« Together, we will mobilise the necessary investments - both public and private - for a Sustainable Blue Economy, laying the foundations of a future that brings together human progress with the preservation of the Planet », H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco.
Monaco is one of the pioneering countries in preserving the oceans based on a long legacy to sea explorations which involved the various generations of the Grimaldi Family, up to H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco whose commitment is internationally renowned. The BEFF, benefiting from the support of the Prince's Government, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Oceanographic Museum, is perfectly in tune with the French and Costa-Rican Presidency of UNOC3 to further improve Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDG14), about conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas and marine resources. It is estimated that concrete actions to meet the challenge will require USD 175 billion per year, compared to USD 25 billion currently invested.
The Monaco's Forum sets itself the goal to find viable solutions to bridge the gap and scale up the profitability, hosting a live debate with business leaders from finance and industry, government representatives, multilateral institutions, and Blue Economy actors. A parade of distinguished guests will intervene to the two-day summit. Notably, Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, Costas Kadis, EU Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans, Arsenio Dominguez, Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), Emmanuel Macron, President of the French Republic, Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Karen Sack, Executive Director of the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance,
During the Event Preview Press Conference on the 21st May 2025, Robert Calcagno, Chief Executive Officer of the Oceanographic Institute and Co-Chair of the BEFF, reminded us that the Sovereign Prince was one of the first partners to be informed by the President of the French Republic about UNOC3 being held in Nice, thanks to the excellent diplomatic and personal relations. The choice of location was not by chance but also due to its strategic proximity with the Principality, considered as a main actor in Blue Economy and Ocean Research.
Robert Calcagno, pointed out: « H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco has been working on ocean protection for twenty years. In the early stage, the general public was not aware of this issue. (...) Starting from the first edition of the Monaco Blue Initiative, things began to develop favourably by putting the ocean on the table, as confirmed by this Conference. The core mission will be to find a series of solutions able to connect needs to funding ».
Olivier Wenden, Vice-President of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and Co-Chair of the BEFF, offered some additional considerations on the general vision of BEFF: « We want to remain extremely pragmatic in addressing Blue Economy since we need to show the big private sector players, consumers and policy-makers that the global ocean is an investment asset ».
Granting a sustainable management of the oceans is not just a philanthropic target but is a major driver of the world economy. Without a healthy ocean, food security, maritime transport and fishing cannot be guaranteed, leading to the loss of one of the main sources of protein existing on Planet Earth: the fish stock. Moreover, the rising sea level and climate change is putting at risk millions of people who live on oceans coastline.
The BEFF wants to promote discussions of a high profile through plenary sessions, panels, and side-events animated by actors working successfully in pilot projects which generate consistent investment opportunities within the Blue Economy.
Besides that, a a Blue Innovation Hall will set the stage for innovative solutions and technologies showcasing win-win business models and best practices aimed at implementing nature-based solutions to safeguard the world's oceans. About 1,500 actors will attend the event to make a contribution. Funding local and national initiatives (e.g.: marine protected areas) and cross-boarder biodiversity conservation programmes, joint public-private financing to accelerate the ocean eco-management transition are some of the key themes on which decision makers, entrepreneurs and world leaders are focusing on.
On the 7th June 2025, "Ocean with David Attenborough", a co-production Silverback Films and Ocean Planet Studios, in association with All3Media International, National Geographic and Minderoo Pictures, will be screened exclusively for all BEFF participants. In this unique film production, the paramount British scientific and naturalist disseminator reveals the crucial importance of ocean life conservation and recovery, through revolutionary discoveries and high technologic solutions to tackle and bypass the greatest environmental and climate challenge.
The Blue Economy and Finance Forum will be an important meeting point to make a concrete and measurable contribution to the preservation of marine environments on a global scale. Pascal Lamy, Vice-President of the Paris Forum for Peace, former WTO Director-General and Co-Chair of the BEFF, concluded: « If we continue to let the oceans degrade, we will continue to intentionally degrade a huge economic opportunity. We need to start with an approach that highlights the benefits of oceans ».
The BEEF is then identified in the UNOC3. The former aims at producing more detailed Recommendations in line to what will be discussed in Nice in view of a final UN Declaration on Blue Economy to foster an Ocean Action Plan. The promoters therefore expect this is only the first step in a series of strategic meetings to encourage scientific research as well as coalitions of coastal communities, policy makers, economists, philanthropists, and tourist operators, in the coming months and years .
The BEFF and the UNOC3 are bearing a series of great messages. We need science to solve problems involving ocean citizens while making Blue Economy fully Sustainable supported by feasible Blue financial mechanisms and Soft Law (non-binding non-binding principles, guidelines, and standards that influence behaviour and business) as effectively summarised by H.E. Olivier Poivre d'Arvor, Ambassador for the Oceans and Poles and Special Envoy of the President of the French Republic for the United Nations Ocean Conference. ***
MonacoEcoArt keeps its journalism open to all although its information is the result of pure professionalism and knowledge. Supporting our Media allows us to keep our independence while offering quality contents based on traceable sources. Thank you for your collaboration.
By Maurice Abbati
Journalist; Editor; Communication, Media and Public Relations Specialist
Lecturer and Author in English language of Technical Articles and the Manual: "Communicating the Environment to Save the Planet, a Journey into Eco-Communication"Â by Springer International Publishing.
