The recent inauguration of the India-Norway Task Force on Blue Economy for Sustainable Development, a joint initiative by both nations, has made headlines. The concept of the task force was birthed during the visit of the Norwegian Prime Minister to India in 2019. Coinciding with this, there’s also been a commencement of a new collaboration centred on Integrated Ocean Management & Research between the two countries.
Objective of the Bilateral Collaboration
The bilateral collaboration aims to manage ocean resources in a sustainable manner. The basis of cooperation between India and Norway in the oceanic field is a common interest in the blue economy and the sustainable exploitation of marine assets. Both nations also share an inclination towards advancing scientific knowledge about oceans.
Role of the India-Norway Task Force on Blue Economy for Sustainable Development
The task force is dedicated to formulating and monitoring joint initiatives between the two nations. An important part of its function is to mobilize stakeholders from both Norway and India at the topmost tier, facilitating continued commitment and progress across different ministries and agencies. It’s essential to note that Norway possesses significant expertise in the Ocean Economy, with 70% of its exports emanating from its maritime industry. Through this bilateral dialogue on oceans, a new aspect has been added to the India-Norway relations which will aid India in understanding the workings of the maritime industry.
India-Norway Relations
India and Norway have shared friendly ties since the establishment of their relationship in 1947, honoring each other’s commonly shared values such as democracy, human rights, and rule of law. Over the recent years, their engagement in fields of trade and technology has escalated. Norway has backed India’s membership to export control regimes like the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), the Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) and the Australia Group (AG). A Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) was signed between India and Norway in 1986, later revised in February 2011. As of 2015-16, the total bilateral trade between the two nations stood at approximately $1.1 billion.
Blue Economy and its Impact
First introduced by Gunter Pauli in his 2010 book titled “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs,” the Blue Economy infers the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved jobs and livelihoods, and maintaining the health of the oceanic ecosystem. This includes renewable energy, fisheries, maritime transport, tourism, climate change management, and waste management. It is integrated into Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 14), which emphasizes conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas, and marine resources for sustainable development. The adoption of the Blue Economy can aid in generating livelihoods, achieving energy security, building ecological resilience, and improving the living standards of coastal communities. With a sprawling coastline of 7,517 km covering nine states and two union territories, India has an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of 2.02 mn sq.km.