Chile has achieved a significant milestone by unanimously voting to approve the Agreement on Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ).
The Senate of the Republic of Chile approval confirms Chile’s commitment to global ocean governance, reflecting the country’s extensive oceanic territory and its role as a developing nation. The treaty’s approval underscores Chile’s oceanic vocation, and the country is taking steps toward its prompt ratification after depositing the instrument with the United Nations.
The High Seas Treaty, also known as the agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), was signed by 81 parties in New York on 20 September, in the margins of the United Nations High Level Week. The BBNJ treaty addresses, among other things:
- the conservation and sustainable use of marine BBNJ.
- marine genetic resources, including questions on benefit-sharing (MGR).
- Area Based Management Tools (ABMT), including marine protected areas.
- environmental impact assessments (EIA).
- capacity-building and the transfer of marine technology (CB&TMT).
Once 60 instruments of ratification are deposited, the treaty will enter into force 120 days later. An ambitious goal for the agreement’s entry into force is the year 2025, coinciding with the third UN Ocean Conference in Nice.
Chile has also proposed Valparaíso as the headquarters for the BBNJ Secretariat, emphasizing the nation’s historical and future role as an oceanic entity and promoting the city as a global hub for ocean governance, combining port tradition and world-class ocean sciences.
