WACA & ACE in Coastal Resilience, University of Cape Coast, Ghana: Expanding the Impact of Research on the Blue Economy

African nations are stepping-up efforts to better manage their blue economies. But realizing the long-term benefits of the sustainable use of marine and coastal resources demands a paradigm shift from business as usual. This requires a holistic, regional approach considering economic development alongside ocean health that is built upon sound research. The sustainability of the ocean economy presents significant challenges that demand effective management, encompassing a wide array of concerns, such as sustainable fisheries, ecosystem health, coastal resilience, and marine pollution. Achieving success in addressing these challenges calls for robust collaboration across borders, involving public-private actors, and development sectors, while also benefiting from the expertise and strong support of academia and research institutions.

In this session, speakers will present how two Regional Integration initiatives, ACECoR and the West Africa Coastal Areas (WACA) Program, act in concert to amplify development impacts, and provide an outlook on how academic institutions can provide critical research and training services to inform sustainable actions for the development of blue economies across the African continent.

Date: Thursday, July 27^th, 2023  |  J8-160 | 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM ET

Click here to join the meeting  |  Meeting ID: 220 275 530 919  | Passcode: NTLsK6

About Speakers

Denis W. Aheto is a Professor of Coastal ecology and Director of the Centre for Coastal Management, Africa Centre of Excellence in Coastal Resilience (ACECoR), University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He is a distinguished international scholar and expert in coastal management, with over 15 years of scientific project management experience. Prof. Aheto is the authorized representative of  institutional donor funded projects in marine/coastal management at the University of Cape Coast funded by the World Bank, USAID and DANIDA, etc. Prof. Aheto is a visionary leader with a strong passion for grants and resources mobilization. He has proven leadership qualities in building strong  partnerships, published in international indexed journals on fisheries management, coastal protected areas, IUU, climate change,  plastic pollution among others. He is a member of several professional bodies and serves on a number international and national boards in his field of competence. .

Rashid Sumaila is a Professor and Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Interdisciplinary Ocean and Fisheries Economics at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, and the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs, University of British Columbia. His research focuses on bioeconomics, marine ecosystem valuation and the analysis of global issues such as fisheries subsidies, marine protected areas, illegal fishing, climate change, marine plastic pollution, and oil spills. Sumaila worked in fisheries and natural resource projects in Norway, Canada, the North Atlantic region, Southern and West Africa, Hong Kong and the South China Sea. Dr. Sumaila received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Bergen and his B.Sc. from the Ahmadu Bello University. Sumaila is widely published. He won the 2017 Volvo Environment Prize and was the 2019 Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.   In 2023, he was the co-winner of the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement. .