Challenges in the ocean economy of South Africa

Figures & data

Table 1. Components of the global ocean economy.

Sector	Activity
Fishing	Capture fishery, aquaculture, seafood processing
Marine biotechnology	Pharmaceuticals, chemicals, seaweed harvesting, seaweed products, marine derived bio-products
Minerals	Oil and gas, deep-sea mining (exploration of rare earth metals, hydrocarbon)
Marine renewable energy	Offshore wind energy production, wave energy production, tidal energy production
Marine manufacturing	Boat manufacturing, sail making, net manufacturing, boat and ship repair, marine instrumentation, aquaculture technology, water construction, marine industrial engineering
Shipping, port and maritime logistics	Ship building and repairing, ship owners and operators, shipping agents and brokers, ship management, liner and port agents, port companies, ship suppliers, container shipping services, stevedores, roll on roll off operators, custom clearance, freight forwarders, safety and training
Marine tourism and leisure	Sea angling from boats, sea angling from the shore, sailing at sea, boating at sea, water skiing, jet skiing surfing, sail boarding, sea kayaking, scuba diving, swimming in the sea, bird watching in coastal areas, whale / dolphin watching, visiting coastal natural reserves, trips to the beach, seaside and islands
Marine construction	Marine construction and engineering
Marine commerce	Marine financial services, marine legal services, marine insurance, ship finance and related services, charterers, media and publishing
Marine ICT	Marine engineering consultancy, meteorological consultancy, environmental consultancy, hydro-survey consultancy, project management consultancy, ICT solutions, geo-informatics services, yacht design, submarine telecom
Education and research	Education and training, Research and Development

Source: Visbeck et al. (2017).

Table 2. Key sectors in the South African ocean economy.

Sector	Sub-sector
Marine transport and manufacturing	Shipping Port infrastructure and development Transportation and regional trade
Offshore oil and gas exploration	Offshore oil exploration Offshore gas exploration
Fisheries and aquaculture	Fishing Aquaculture
Marine protection services and ocean governance	Marine protected areas Maritime regulatory Naval defence
Small harbour development	Marine coastal services Transport Maritime logistics
Coastal and marine tourism	Boating and cruising Sport and recreation Leisure

Source: Researcher’s own construction.

Table 3. The link between the major SA ocean economy challenges, the 15 global challenges and affected sectors.

Major ocean economy challenge	15 global challenges	Sectors affected
1. Pollution	Reducing threat of new and re-emerging diseases and immune microorganisms	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Meeting growing energy demands safely and efficiently	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
2. Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing	Balancing population growth and resources	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Promoting ethical market economies in reducing inequality	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Preventing transnational organised crime networks from becoming more powerful and sophisticated global enterprises	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
3. Climate change	Addressing global climate change and sustainable development	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Sufficient clean water without conflict	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Accelerating scientific and technological breakthroughs and improved human conditions	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture, Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
4. Disease events	Reducing threat of new and re-emerging diseases and immune microorganisms	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Balancing population growth and resources	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism
	Accelerating scientific and technological breakthroughs and improved human conditions	Marine transport and manufacturing Offshore oil and gas exploration Fisheries and aquaculture Marine protection services and governance Small harbours Coastal and marine tourism

Source: Researcher’s own construction.

Visbeck, M, Kronfeld-Goharani, U, Neumann, B, Rickels, W, Schmidt, V, van Doorn, E, Matz-Lück, N, Ott, K & Quaas, M, 2017. Securing blue wealth: The need for a special sustainable development goal for the ocean and coasts and future ocean spatial planning. Marine Policy 48, 184–19.

 Google Scholar