POLICY makers and key stakeholders in the maritime sector in Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, are being given the opportunity to provide feedback on draft Coastal Master Plans and Marine Spatial Plans for their respective countries under the Caribbean Regional Oceanscape Project (CROP).
The Caribbean Regional Oceanscape Project is currently being implemented by the OECS Commission on behalf of these five Member States. The Project seeks to strengthen Ocean Governance as well as Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) in the five participating OECS Member States, and develop a Regional Marine Spatial Planning Framework for the wider OECS region.
To date, two rounds of consultations have been held, resulting in draft coastal and marine spatial plans. A third round of National Consultations are being held to review and refine these plans. These consultations began in St. Kitts and Nevis on October 27, 28 and 29. Saint Luciaās National Consultations will be held on Tuesday November 3 and Wednesday November 4, 2020. National Consultations in Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines are scheduled for November 17 ā 19, 2020. Dominicaās National Consultations are slated for November 24 ā 26, 2020.
The Consultations, which are being held virtually, are being facilitated by Dillon Consulting Ltd, the consulting firm leading the Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) component of the Caribbean Regional Oceanscape Project. The draft Coastal and Marine Spatial Plans have been prepared, and these have been shared with stakeholders in the five Member States, ahead of the Consultations.
Project Manager of the Caribbean Regional Oceanscape Project, Susanna Scott, spoke on the importance of the consultative process in developing Coastal Master Plans and Marine Spatial Plans for the Member States, and the next steps.
The OECS recognises that citizen engagement and participation in this marine spatial planning process is key to achieving more equitable distribution of benefits to all, and thus calls on all to participate, as best as possible, in the virtual sessions.