Monaco has played a significant role in the creation of a new global treaty aimed at protecting marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, passing on its knowledge of how to establish marine protected areas (MPAs) in the fourth and final meeting.

The 4th session of the Intergovernmental Conference responsible for drawing up a new International Convention on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity in the High Seas was held in New York.

The Permanent Mission of the Principality of Monaco to the UN took part, presenting “concrete proposals in the various debates, particularly around the process of creating protected marine areas on the high seas,” said the government in a statement on Monday. “These proposals were largely taken into account during the exchanges aimed at achieving common positions between small island states of the Pacific, groups of African states, from Latin America, the Caribbean Community, the European Union, the United Kingdom, Norway, Australia, New Zealand and Canada.”

In 2017, the United Nations General Assembly decided to convene an Intergovernmental Conference to consider the recommendations of the Preparatory Committee established by a 2015 resolution on the elements and to elaborate the text of an international legally binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea, detailing the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, with a view to developing the instrument as soon as possible.

The first session was convened from 4th to 17th September 2018, the second session from 25th March to 5th April 2019, and the third session from 19th to 30th August 2019. The fourth session, which was postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic, was convened from 7th to 18th March 2022.

Monaco said it is committed to continuing the process until “the conclusion of the negotiations”.

Photo by Anastasia Taioglou on Unsplash