Advancing Inclusive Fisheries Governance for SDG 14
Towards Sustainable, Equitable, and Resilient Blue Growth
The Sustainable Development Goal 14: Life Below Water emphasizes the conservation and sustainable use of ocean and marine resources. Its targets include preventing overexploitation of fish stocks, conserving coastal and marine ecosystems, eliminating harmful fishing subsidies, and ensuring equitable access for small-scale fishers. Collectively, these objectives aim to promote sustainable fisheries, biodiversity conservation, and inclusive governance to safeguard ocean health and enhance coastal livelihoods.
India’s Blue Economy Vision seeks to harness the potential of its vast coastline and marine ecosystems to foster economic growth, ecological sustainability, and social inclusion. Anchored in the SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) doctrine and aligned with the Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, the strategy emphasizes innovations in sustainable fisheries, marine transport, tourism, and emerging ocean sectors. Strengthening governance frameworks, ensuring equitable participation of coastal communities, and mobilizing investments through innovative financing mechanisms like blue bonds are central to this vision.
In this context, TERI in collaboration with the Environmental Defense India Foundation (EDIF), will be organizing State-Level Policy Dialogues on “Advancing Inclusive Fisheries Governance for SDG 14” in coastal states and union territories.
These policy dialogues aim to bring together policymakers, sectoral experts, fisher representatives, and development partners to deliberate on strengthening inclusive, sustainable, and participatory governance mechanisms in the fisheries sector. The discussions will explore actionable pathways for aligning state-level priorities with SDG 14 targets, enhancing institutional coordination, empowering small-scale fishers, and fostering equitable blue growth.
Through knowledge exchange and stakeholder engagement, these dialogues seek to advance India’s leadership in sustainable fisheries management and contribute to the realization of SDG 14 – Life Below Water.