The ‘Marine Spatial Planning Technical Expert Group for the Atlantic Coast of West, Central and Southern Africa region (MSP-TEG-ACA)’ convened online on 8 April 2026 to advance the development of a Regional MSProadmap.
The meeting brought together country representatives, the Abidjan Convention Secretariat, IOC of UNESCO through the IOCAFRICA Secretariat and the MSPglobal Programme, and the newly elected co-chairs of the Expert Group.
Following opening remarks and an introduction of the co-chairs, participants reviewed the proposed structure, working approach and timeline for the roadmap development process. Discussions focused on ensuring that the proposed scope addressed the most relevant regional MSP priorities while remaining realistic for a voluntary expert group working within the agreed timeframe.
Through plenary discussions and bilingual breakout sessions for English and French speaking participants, members reviewed the proposed thematic priorities against, considering their core objectives, expected outputs and links with existing regional initiatives. Participants also identified issues to be further addressed throughout the roadmap process, including the development of actionable recommendations, implementation pathways and resource mobilisation.
The expert group subsequently validated five thematic priorities to guide its work:
- Governance, policy and regional cooperation
- Data, knowledge and decision support
- Ecosystem-based management, climate resilience and sustainability
- Sustainable blue Economy and sector integration
- Capacity development and stakeholder engagement
Members also reviewed and endorsed the proposed working approach and timeline, including the establishment of thematic sub-groups and the use of a common methodology to develop their respective contributions.
The meeting demonstrated strong engagement and ownership among country representatives, who actively contributed to refining the thematic scope and working arrangements. The agreed structure provides a common framework for identifying national and regional MSP challenges, opportunities and priority recommendations.
The next phase will focus on gathering and analysing country-level information under the five validated thematic priorities. This will be followed by work within the thematic sub-groups to develop regional recommendations. The resulting outputs will form the substantive basis for the preparation of the RegionalMSProadmap for the Atlantic Coast of West, Central and Southern Africa, its subsequent review and validation by the expert group, and co-implementation by the Abidjan Convention and the IOCAFRICA Secretariats.
The MSP-TEG-ACA was established in 2025 under the IOC Sub Commission for Africa and the Adjacent Island States (IOCAFRICA), and the Abidjan Convention Secretariat to provide technical guidance and advice to the organizations with regards to the following: (i) Scope of work required to support Member States in MSP process; (ii) Actions geared towards informing policy and decision making on MSP at national and regional levels; (iii) Needs and desirability for undertaking MSP; and (iv) Lesson learning and capacity requirements. IOC’s MSPglobal Programme provides support to the activities of the MSP-TEG-ACA.
DOCUMENTS:
RELATED LINKS:
- MSPglobal International Guide on Marine/Maritime Spatial Planning – Volume 1
- MSPglobal International Guide on Marine/Maritime Spatial Planning Volume 2 – Biodiversity Inclusive Principle
- MSPglobal International Guide on Marine/ Maritime Spatial Planning Volume 3 – Climate-smart Principle
CONTACT:
MSPglobal.comm@unesco.org