Thank you, President Thomson, for a very inspiring speech and enlightening update on the latest development on achieving the Development Goal about the Ocean.

Excellency, ladies and gentlemen, I was there last month in New York at the UN Ocean Conference. It was a very exciting and stimulating occasion to witness the heated debates and interventions coming from a wide spectrum of views and interests. There were two extremes of perspectives: Blue Conservationists claimed that we should leave the ocean alone. It has suffered enough from human activities and indiscretion, including over-exploitation of marine resources with unstainable fishing, pollution with plastics, rising sea temperatures and levels, ocean acidification, loss of biodiversity and habitat, and land-based pollution. “We should stop immediately all marine development and works that could harm the ocean any further” they said. 

The other extreme, the Blue Economists argued that 70% of the earth is water which harbors great resources and potential to support human growth and development. Blue ocean economy is essential to the future welfare and prosperity of humankind. It is a key source of food, energy, minerals, health, leisure and transport upon which hundreds of millions of people depend. The   construction  of   marine channels,  development   of  the Blue  economy,  and   use  of   marine resources  are   common   aspirations  of not only island  states, but the whole wide world.

Ladies and gentlemen, the ocean is home not only for fish, but for all humanity, and for the totality of the environment and Mother Nature. While we should be apologetic about what humanity had done to subject our ocean ecology to serious predicaments, we should at the same time, be more prudent and considerate in advocating the development of the Blue Economy, and more confident in seeing in it an answer to the challenges of our time, taking the ocean and humanity together as a whole into a holistic consideration. 1.2 billion people in this world still live in extreme poverty, with 12% of the world population undernourished and without food, while 2.8 billion people living in rural areas still have no access to electricity. We urgently need solutions to tackle this problem and address SDG 1 (no poverty), SDG 2 (zero hunger), and SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy).  Fortunately, the oceans present a compelling answer.

The ocean is one of Earth’s most valuable natural resources. It provides us food in the form of fish and shellfish—about 200 billion pounds are caught each year; it is used for transportation and human recreation; it is mined for minerals, oil and gas. Blue energy from the ocean is renewable energy, a green source, which can generate electricity with tides, ocean currents, and temperature and salinity gradients. The potential production capacity for ocean energy (of 150,000 Terawatts per year) is calculated to be up to seven times the world's current power generation capacity (22,00 Terawatts per year).

Recently found methane hydrate, an ice-like compound made up of methane, a natural gas found in the depths of the ocean, has a reserve estimated to meet the world’s energy need for 1,000 years! We should promote conditions that will unlock this potential of Blue energy from the ocean, while at the same time do not kill mother goose that lay the golden eggs. We should never take the ocean for granted, but treat the ocean with reverence and respect, and simultaneously, help foster a balanced approach to the development of the Blue Economy and Blue Energy alongside with Blue Conservation.  We should embrace this task with courage and vigor, discarding the antiquated notion that growth and sustainability present contrasting demands. The onus is now upon us to establish the right balance between conserving our ocean and sustainably developing its resources.  Getting this balance right is the key to effective ocean governance and management.  Sustainable ocean must therefore be an essential integral part of the new marine Blue economy.

While many developing countries today, especially small island developing states (SIDSs), are struggling to clean up their parts of the ocean and conserve their respective marine habitat, and to harness investments for building resilient infrastructures, they lack the capacity to mobilize and leverage available resources, and the necessary networking to form strategic alliances to spearhead coordinated development with an economy of scale. Individually, we fight our own unique battle. But when we band together, the battlefield might become one big united front for everybody. We should join forces so that a rising tide lifts all boats. Coordinated efforts in conservation and for economy calls for Blue Connectivity. A Blue platform is desperately needed. China's 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road is a timely answer to these challenges. By fostering greater international cooperation on maritime science and technology, marine protection and conservation, economic development, and governance, this platform provides an avenue through which small and developing countries can work together, taking advantage of one another's strengths and abilities.

This Blue Silk Road features green development, ocean-based conservation and prosperity, maritime security, innovative growth, and collaborative governance. Potential of maritime and island resources could be realized through initiatives such as port industry, ocean shipping, port logistics, and human resource development. It invites partnership to build infrastructure and connectivity to foster trade, and investment, to create employment, raise living standards, and promote people to people links across the oceans, from our sea of islands and to the land masses in a sustainable way.

Ladies and gentlemen, the blue waters unite us altogether. The Maritime Blue Silk Road is a legacy that carries the efforts and aspiration of several generations of people from different lands and various sectors, and from diplomats like all of you, starting with Zheng He in the Ming Dynasty some 600 years ago. Let us forge a Blue Partnership by uniting closely around you, those time-tested friends, and work hand in hand to improve our marine habitat and the livelihood of our people in a sustainable way, by sharing what we have today, and sharing what we shall have tomorrow. Most importantly, Blue Partnership redefines a renewed relationship and commitment between people and the ocean. Indeed, collaborating on the Blue Economy and Blue Conservation through a Blue Partnership is a means by which we can achieve the SDGs, and also lay the foundation for a global oceanic community, of shared interest and of common destiny, a place where no one is left behind, and no one has to take second place. Embarking on this Blue Silk Road together, we can make the world a brighter place for all, now and in the future, our children and the ocean including