The MCO offers an ideal platform for regional attention to the massive sargassum upwelling phenomenon that particularly affects the coasts of the Mexican Caribbean and other nations in the region

Mexico signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) of the Ocean Coordination Mechanism (OCM) of the CLME+ region, which aims to support Integrated Ocean Governance in the Large Marine Ecosystems of the Caribbean and Brazil's Northern Shelf, bringing the total number of countries that have joined to 19.

The undersecretary of Biodiversity and Environmental Restoration of Mexico's Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Marina Robles García, signed the MOU on June 9, at the Actioning Blue: Caribbean Vision 30x30 event, within the framework of the Third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC-3), held June 9-13 in Nice, France.

During her speech, Undersecretary Robles acknowledged that this instrument "is fundamental for promoting and safeguarding marine and coastal ecosystems as a key factor for the well-being of populations and for the prosperity of sustainable ocean-based economies".

Photo Credit: Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales de México

He also stressed that "it allows for the promotion of alliances with civil society and the private sector to facilitate and improve efforts for the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal resources, as well as to support intersectoral coordination and collaboration".

The MOU formalizes a long-term structure that brings together countries, intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) and regional stakeholders to address shared marine opportunities and challenges, shifting the focus from problem-focused approaches to proactive, solution-oriented collaboration in areas such as sustainable fisheries, pollution control, biodiversity conservation, marine spatial management and climate-resilient blue economies. 

Likewise, the MCO offers an ideal platform for regional attention to the phenomenon of massive sargassum upwelling that particularly affects the coasts of the Mexican Caribbean and other nations in the region. Coordination between countries will allow the sharing of data, technologies and strategies to effectively mitigate its impact.

Under the common theme "Our Sea, Our Source, Our Future. The Wider Caribbean: United in Action," this expanding coalition reflects a unified regional vision for a sustainable and climate-resilient ocean future.

For more information on the Ocean Coordination Mechanism, visit the OCM general page at https://www.procaribeplus.org/es/pages/ocm-overview.