The modern marine economy, also known as the blue economy, emphasizes innovation in marine science and technology, the harmony of man and the marine environment, marine cooperation, and the coordination of land and maritime development.

“Compared with the traditional marine economy, the implications and scope of the blue economy have changed,” said Sun Jiting, deputy director of the Shandong Institute of Marine Economics and Culture at the Shandong Academy of Social Sciences. The blue economy better suits new development concepts and facilitates industrial integration and cross-border cooperation, creating new dynamics, new models and new industries.

In Sun’s view, the current blue economy is showing rapid development. First of all, breakthroughs in marine technology have promoted and upgraded traditional industries, helping them transition from the low end to the high end and from low value-added to high value-added. In addition, the rapid development of marine science and technology, industrial integration and cross-border cooperation have become new trends. Moreover, along with the improvement of people’s living standards, there have been some emerging marine industries, such as the marine healthcare industry.

The blue economy has become a new growth point for the global economy, said Chen Mingbao, an associate research fellow at the Maritime Economic Research Center at Sun Yat-sen University. The blue economy has played an important role in promoting international trade, the global flow of factors of production, economic growth and poverty eradication.

Chen said that the blue economy is a new concept of international maritime cooperation. The fair and inclusive growth advocated by the blue economy is conducive to maritime cooperation among countries and has become the most important area of partnership for many countries’ maritime development.

The blue economy has become an important area of global maritime governance, Chen continued. The blue economy advocates the coordinated and sustained development of economy, society, ecology, maritime cooperation and co-governance.

Sun said that it is necessary to value marine ecological protection and integrate marine ecology into all aspects and processes of blue economic growth. It is also important to value marine culture and to develop the marine cultural industry, which promotes the blue economy at the same time.

Liu Shuguang, a senior research fellow at the Institute of Maritime Development at the Ocean University of China, said that international cooperation in the marine economy is one of the main points of cooperation in the international maritime affairs between China and the countries and regions along the Belt and Road (B&R). The development of the marine economy for the whole world is one of the basic objectives of China’s participation in global maritime governance.

Chen suggested that B&R construction should be taken as an opportunity for China to deepen cooperation with relevant countries, to actively develop featured marine economic parks and China-foreign cooperative parks, and to expand space for the blue economy’s development.

Chen also suggested taking the opportunity to construct a community of shared future for mankind and making good use of existing bilateral and multilateral cooperation mechanisms. At the same time we should establish rules and systems for cooperation and build cooperation frameworks together with the international community to improve and develop the global maritime governance system.

(Edited by Jiang Hong)