IMO says its Secretary-General Kitack Lim attended the inauguration of the new maritime and ocean policy research institute at the World Maritime University (WMU) in Malmö, Sweden (8 May).
Mr. Lim, who is also Chancellor of WMU, said that the establishment of the WMU-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute was of great strategic importance for IMO and, indeed, for all those who seek to advance the global ocean agenda. “The Global Ocean Institute will further WMU’s distinguished legacy of educating maritime and oceans leaders who have the knowledge and responsibility to affect change in their home countries and who will contribute to the global conservation and sustainable use of the ocean,” Mr. Lim said.
Also speaking at the inauguration of the institute were Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, President, WMU; Mr. Yohei Sasakawa, Chair, Nippon Foundation; and Ms Isabella Lövin, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Climate, and Deputy Prime Minister, Sweden.
The WMU-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute will provide a space for policy makers, the scientific community, regulators, industry actors, academics, and representatives of civil society to meet to discuss how best to manage and use ocean spaces and their resources for the sustainable development of present and future generations, supported by evidence-based research, educational programmes and capacity building. The institute was established with funding from the Nippon Foundation, supported by the Governments of Canada and Sweden and the city of Malmö.
The Ocean Institute is a concrete response to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and in particular Goal 14 - the Ocean Goal - that commits governments to “conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development".
The inauguration was held at the opening of the WMU Global Ocean Conference 2018 (8-9 May). IMO's Stefan Micallef delivered a keynote address, outlining IMO's role in the ocean space and in supporting the sustainable development goals.