The Secretariat of the Wider Caribbean Ocean Coordination Mechanism (OCM), together with partner organizations and in coordination with the Chairs of the MCO Steering Group and Executive Group, will hold the First Joint Workshop of the OCM Working Groups and the First Regional Partnership Forum: "Our Sea - Our Source - Our Future. The Wider Caribbean (and beyond): United in Action, from analysis to decision-making and implementation," scheduled for Wednesday, October 29, and Thursday, October 30, 2025, in a hybrid format.
Both events will be held in Cartagena, Colombia, as parallel activities to the 78th Conference of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute (GCFI78, October 27-31), whose theme this year is: “Partnering for the oceans: merging efforts on oceans, climate, and biodiversity through regional marine data and innovation.”
GCFI78 is co-sponsored by the UNDP/GEF/UNOPS PROCARIBE+ project and UNESCO-IOC Subcommission for the Caribbean and Adjacent Regions
The Joint Workshop is organized by the OCM Secretariat, and the First Regional Partnership Forum is co-organized by the projects: “PROCARIBE+” (OCM Secretariat), IW:LEARN, “BE CLME+,” “Gulf of Mexico SAP LME,” and “Sustainable Pacific,” as well as by UNESCO-IOC IOCARIBE, the UNEP Cartagena Convention Secretariat, the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean,the GCFI and the Marine Biodiversity Observers Network.
The objectives of the Joint Workshop of the OCM Working:
- Developing roadmaps for the main objectives of the OCM 2026–2028 Work Program (SOMEE, SAP and MDII).
- Aligning the preliminary draft roadmaps to consolidate an integrated roadmap that will enable the overall OCM 2026-2028 Work Program to be fulfilled.
- Finalizing the Terms of Reference for the working groups.
The Partnership Forum will promote and facilitate dialogue among a wide range of key ocean stakeholders on integrated and interactive ocean governance in the Wider Caribbean (and beyond)
With a broader audience, this forum aims to:
- Disseminate the OCM's mandate and Work Program.
- Promote the exchange of experiences and good practices.
- Present the results of the working groups to the ocean community.
- Mobilize support to implement the OCM Work Program.
Context
The First Regional Partnership Forum “Our Sea - Our Source - Our Future. The Wider Caribbean (and beyond): United in Action” is taking place at a critical juncture for ocean governance and sustainable development in the Wider Caribbean. The commencement of the Wider Caribbean Ocean Coordination Mechanism (OCM) in December 2024 marked a milestone in the region’s collective efforts to strengthen cooperation for healthy, resilient marine and coastal ecosystems and sustainable blue economies.
Understood as the collective of its members, the regional OCM is positioned as a multi-stakeholder platform that directly contributes to foster coordination efforts, dialogue, coherence, synergies, and joint action among governments and intergovernmental organisations (the OCM membership), and other ocean-relevant regional stakeholders.
The Forum constitutes an initial opportunity to facilitate regional and global stakeholder engagement beyond the OCM membership -currently consisting of 20 countries of the region and 9 IGOs- in line with the concept of an integrated and interactive ocean governance that involves a wide range of stakeholders and sectors of the society.
This First Partnership Forum under the OCM’s Work Programme responds to renewed global and regional commitments to accelerate the transition from analysis to decision-making and implementation. It is framed within key international and regional processes, including:
- The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly SDG 14 (Life Below Water) and its interlinkages with climate, biodiversity, and socio-economic goals.
- The Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF), with its targets on ecosystem restoration, marine and coastal protection, and resource mobilisation.
- The Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
- The “Science we Need for the Ocean we Want” UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030) and the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021–2030), which call for strengthened scientific knowledge, data sharing, and innovative partnerships to address the triple planetary crisis.
- The commitments under the Cartagena Convention and its Protocols, which remain the only legally binding regional framework for the protection and sustainable development of the Wider Caribbean’s marine environment
- The Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAS).
The Forum reinforces the OCM’s role as a partnership-oriented and knowledge-driven mechanism for advancing the Wider Caribbean ocean agenda.
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
The First Regional Partnership Forum: Our Sea - Our Source - Our Future, The Wider Caribbean (and beyond): United in Action. From Analysis to Decision-Making to Implementation featured a number of panel sessions, aimed at eliciting rich discussions and expert insights on how the many different (global, regional and national) initiatives and efforts can become complementary, linked and/or integrated, and made supportive of a unified, powerful and transformative regional ocean agenda for the Wider Caribbean.
Opening Remarks of the First Regional Partnership Forum: Our Sea - Our Source - Our Future, The Wider Caribbean (and beyond): United in Action. Opening remarks were delivered by Patrick Debels, Regional Coordinator of PROCARIBE+ and Director of the OCM Secretariat, who emphasized that while multiple governance instruments already exist, the key challenge lies in “how [to] jointly work and unify this into a single integrated ocean agenda.” The session underscored the importance of moving beyond policy alignment toward coordinated action at regional, national, and local levels.
Panel 1: Practical Experiences on Ocean / Blue Economy policies within and beyond the Wider Caribbean Region - how do they all link up?
Moderator:
- Ms. Claudette Spiteri, IW:LEARN Project Manager
Panelists:
- Mr. Kareem Sabir, Deputy Programme Manager, Sustainable Development,
CARICOM Secretariat - Ms. Susanna De Beauville-Scott, Programme Director, Sustainable Ocean
Management Programme, Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
Commission (OECS) - Mr. Mario Escobedo, Renewable Natural Resources Engineer and
Economist,The Central American Commission for Environment and
Development (CCAD) - Ms. Margarita Caso Chavez, Director General of Conservation and
Management of Seas and Coasts, SEMARNAT, Mexico (TBC) - Mr. Vianey Eloi Assonfack Ndemasse, African Union Commission
Panel conclusions:
The OCM Partnership Forum reaffirmed that the Wider Caribbean’s challenge is not a lack of frameworks, but the need for stronger alignment, coordination, and delivery. By emphasizing complementarity among governance tools and the central role of financing and implementation, the discussion contributed to a shared understanding of how the region can move from analysis and planning toward concrete, measurable ocean action. These insights are expected to inform the refinement and implementation of the OCM Work Programme.
Panel 2: Frameworks and Approaches for agreeing and committing to ocean action: Strategic Action Programmes, Sustainable Oceans Plans and Regional Seas Strategies - where do we go from here?
Moderator:
- Mr. Patrick Debels, PROCARIBE+ Regional Coordinator/Director OCM
Secretariat
Panelists:
- Ms. Cynthia Barzuna, Global Deputy Director Ocean Program, World
Resources Institute (WRI)Ms. Fanny Douvere, Sustainable Ocean Planning and Management Lead IOC-UNESCO - Mr. Andrew Hume, Senior Environmental Specialist, International Waters
Focal Area Coordinator, GEF Secretariat (TBC) - Mr. Alberto Pacheco Capella, Head, Regional Seas Programme, UNEP
- Mr. Erick Castro, Principal Executive, Technical Advisory on Biodiversity and
Climate (Blue Economy), Development Bank of Latin America (CAF).
Panel conclusions:
This panel reaffirmed that the principal challenge for ocean governance in the Wider Caribbean and beyond is not the absence of policies or frameworks, but the need to strengthen coherence, coordination, and implementation across existing instruments and institutional levels. The discussions highlighted that Strategic Action Programs, Sustainable Ocean Plans, Regional Seas frameworks, and Blue Economy strategies are most effective when understood as complementary and mutually reinforcing tools rather than parallel or competing processes.
Panel 3: a regional Data, Information and Knowledge Infrastructure in support of Ocean Governance.
Moderator:
- Mr. Dayne Buddo, BE CLME+ Regional Coordinator
Panelists:
- Ms. Susana Salvador, Coordinator, OSPAR Commission (TBC)
Mr. Christopher Corbin, Coordinator of the Cartagena Convention
Secretariat - Ms. Yvette Dieiouadi, WECAFC Secretariat, FAO
- Ms. Margarita Lopez, Ocean Decade Coordination Office, Ocean Data
Sharing (ODS), IOC-UNESCO - Ms. Miosotis Rivas Peña, Chief of ECLAC Subregional Headquarters for the
Caribbean - Mr. Sergio Cerdeira, Researcher, SIMAR Coordinator, CONABIO
Panel conclusions:
The Panel underscored that robust regional data, information, and knowledge infrastructure is a foundational pillar for integrated and interactive ocean governance in the Wider Caribbean and beyond. The Panel concluded that the Ocean Coordination Mechanism has a unique opportunity to act as a facilitator rather than a new data repository, strengthening existing systems, promoting interoperability, and fostering trust among institutions and stakeholders. Sustainable financing, capacity-building, and incentives for open data sharing—particularly within the scientific community—were identified as critical enablers of long-term success. By promoting a “collect once, use many times” approach, the OCM can help countries meet multiple national, regional, and global reporting obligations while ensuring that data serves its primary purpose: supporting evidence-based policies, adaptive management, and resilient blue economies for present and future generations.
Closing Remarks of the First Regional Partnership Forum: Our Sea - Our Source - Our Future, The Wider Caribbean (and beyond): United in Action from Mr. Patrick Debels, PROCARIBE+ Regional Coordinator and Director of the Secretariat of the Wider Caribbean Ocean Coordination Mechanism
In his closing remarks, Mr. Patrick Debels emphasized that the World Café represented only the beginning of a longer-term collaborative process. He stressed that the true value of the Forum would depend on sustained follow-up, realistic commitments, and concrete collaboration aligned with the capacities and priorities of participants. He announced that the outcomes of the workshop would be shared through an online platform to encourage continued engagement with the OCM’s broader work.
