The blue economy is an axis of natural development for an island economy like Reunion. Beyond the potentials and specificities to the territory, this theme is also part of the regional European and French blue growth strategies, where the sea and the coastline become engines of the economy.
Like other European basins, it is necessary to plan the sustainable use of maritime space and its resources in the context of the Indian Ocean basin.
OCEAN METISS, with the financial support of the European Union, the Réunion Region and the French State, aims at defining a blue strategy for Réunion in association with the Western Indian Ocean Basin. This innovative project contributes to the expected development of Integrated Maritime Spatial Planning in the South-West Basin of the Indian Ocean Zone.
For this purpose, the project has several missions:
- Implement an innovative methodology for marine spatial planning
- To develop the sharing of international expertise on the theme of the blue economy
- Pooling scientific and technical human resources
- Develop skills and training for sea-related trades
- Ensure sustainability of structural support for blue growth.
The Ocean Metiss Project is implementing a participatory marine spatial planning process involving stakeholders. This approach aims at creating a transparent decision-making framework, geared towards sustainability and based on local knowledge.
To this end, the project adopts a multi-scale approach from the Reunion coast to offshore taking into account dynamics throughout the Indian Ocean basin.
The main achievements and expected impacts of the project are:
- An ecosystem, social and economic state of the coast and the sea
- An assessment of the potential of an extended maritime area to revive economic development while preserving biodiversity.
- A new maritime spatial planning tool to guide and coordinate public policies for managing the sea and resources
- Strategic maritime plan (spatialized) developed with stakeholders