S. Korea to host major global maritime conference next week

The 10th Our Ocean Conference (OOC) will be held under the theme "Our Ocean, Our Action" for three days from next Monday at BEXCO, about 325 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.

Some 2,000 officials, including government delegates from 100 countries and the leaders of international institutions and nongovernmental organizations, will attend the event.

The upcoming OOC plans to discuss seven topics, including marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution, maritime security and digital oceans.

As the host country, Seoul plans to propose the "Korea Blue Action Plan," which comprises some 70 pledges on efforts to promote sustainability of the ocean sector.

The pledges include efforts to expand marine protected areas across the world, use of eco-friendly fuels for vessels and efforts to decrease marine plastic pollution.

"Today, around 3 billion people live in coastal areas, and although we currently utilize only about 1 percent of the ocean, it already generates US$3 trillion annually, or 5 percent of the global gross domestic product," Oceans Minister Kang Do-hyung said in a press briefing.

"Despite such value, our oceans are facing crisis as the marine ecosystem is threatened by a rise of ocean temperature sparked by climate change, marine litter and overexploitation of marine resources," he said, calling for global efforts to address the issues.

On the sidelines of the event, the oceans ministry will hold a business summit of shipping, shipbuilding and digital ocean industries.

South Korea will also host the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Oceans-related Ministerial Meeting for two days from next Wednesday in Busan, ahead of the APEC summit set to take place in the country in November.

As earlier reported, Dushanbe hosted an International Conference on Glaciers’ Preservation 2025.