The Maldives has officially ratified the UN treaty concerning the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ Treaty).
During a special ceremony held yesterday on the sidelines of the 79th session of the UN General Assembly, Minister of Foreign Affairs Moosa Zameer handed over the "Instrument of Ratification" required to ratify the treaty to the UN on behalf of the Maldives. With this, the Maldives has become the 9th country to ratify the treaty.
During the cabinet meeting held on February 11 this year, it was decided that it is important for the Maldives to sign and ratify this treaty. To proceed with this work, the government submitted it for parliamentary approval on February 29. After reviewing the matter, the Parliament gave its approval for the Maldives to participate in the treaty on May 13, 2024. The Maldives signed the BBNJ Treaty on September 3, 2024.
The Maldivian government has assured that the Maldives will remain steadfast as a country that prioritizes and advocates for the protection of oceans, the conservation of these areas, and ensuring their sustainable use.
While protecting all natural resources within the maritime zones of the Maldives is a very high responsibility of the country, ensuring that areas beyond the maritime zones of the Maldives are protected and used sustainably is also part of fulfilling this responsibility in ocean conservation.
Accordingly, under this ratified treaty, procedures for protecting large ocean areas have been established. In addition, the treaty includes matters related to sharing technical marine information, as well as formal aspects related to taking measures in response to climate change. Since all these matters are important for protecting the benefits derived from the maritime zones of the Maldives, ratifying this treaty will bring numerous benefits to the Maldives.
The BBNJ Treaty, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on June 19, 2023, is open for countries to sign until September 20, 2025.
