Blurred on Blue
By Yannick Beaudoin, Chief Scientist at GRID-Arendal
A few days spent at the recent Africa Export-Import Bank’s 2016 Annual General Shareholder meeting were a rich learning experience to say the least. A gathering of the central bankers of the continent along with various Ministers from finance and development ministries could be expected to encourage a diversity of opinions, perspectives and even some disagreement. And when you throw in the nascent concept of “Blue Economy” be prepared for some ideological blurriness. This year, the Africa Export-Impact Bank reacted to recent political developments on the continent and organized its shareholder meeting around how it, as an investment institution, could play a role in enabling an African Blue Economy. But what on Earth (or more appropriately, on water) is a “Blue Economy”?
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“Blue Economy” is a very broad label that cannot easily be defined without referring to a specific contexts. According the “Africa’s Blue Economy: a policy handbook” produced by UNECA with support from GRID-Arendal.
The Blue Economy in the African context covers both aquatic and marine spaces, including oceans, seas, coasts, lakes, rivers, and underground water. It encompasses a range of productive sectors, including fisheries, aquaculture, tourism, transport, shipbuilding, energy, bio prospecting, and underwater mining and related activities.
A sustainable Blue Economy, however, also requires a transformation of the underpinning economic and governance systems in place to a model that fully acknowledge real ecological limits and social conditions (i.e. a model that no longer treats these as “economic externalities”).
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Our starting point is water and at every stage of human history, water has been the lynchpin of our societies. We have always lived in a Blue Economy! And yet somehow, over the past few years, likely caused by widespread use of economic “colours” from black and brown to green and grey. (For example, Green Economy for low carbon societies; black for as in the illicit economy; brown, as in carbon intensive); and grey economy or the informal sectors of an economy like volunteerism.) With all these colours it was inevitable that we would “discover” the Blue.
But what is it in concrete terms? This question is not so easy to answer. The dominant global economic paradigm dogmatically believes in a one-size-fits-all model whereby no matter what country you are in, only one standard framework exists — the “free market.” However, in introducing labels such as the green and blue economy, we are gradually coming to realize that a one size fits all is nothing but snake oil being touted by travelling salesmen.
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Societies are inherently constructs based on shared cultural, spiritual, ethical and other values that express themselves through the systems they create. This includes the economy. In other words, an economy is inherently flavoured by cultural nuances. What “makes life worth living” (as noted in a 1968 speech on GDP by Robert Kennedy) in one country or culture is rarely exactly the same in another. And that’s the point: an economy is lived through human experience. Mathematizing it, turning lived experience into economic models, has only led to vicious cycles of booms and bust, increased the concentration of power in society and violated our planetary boundaries in ways we never thought possible. And all this and more, done by choice. It was not imposed on us by a law of Nature. Rather, it is an ugly expression of one part of human nature.
Marginalized countries around the world are starting to realise that the old “northern/western” way of doing things could never serve their desire for progress, well-being and quality of life and they are seeking new approaches. In Africa, this old thinking is leading to a depletion of natural resources in favour of far away markets. It is leading to the same environmental degradation that has plagued western societies and more recently China and it is creating increasing (and needless) inequality within populations. Undertaking the design and implementation of a sustainable Blue Economy offers countries in Africa (and elsewhere) an opportunity to “leap frog” over this old thinking. Instead of using old, flawed approaches to development, countries are free to innovate what they feel will lead to the economic successes they desire.
As Nobel Laureate and former World Bank Chief Economist Joseph Stiglitz said during the Africa Export-Import Bank meeting, “Don’t just take what they tell you as gospel. Question the fine print. Say no to what is clearly disadvantageous to your country. And don’t shy away from applying and/or inventing some new economic thinking”. Prof Stiglitz has been constructively critical of the neo-liberal approach to globalization that dominated the late 20th century, highlighting its failures and debunking many of its false promises.
Africa’s Blue Economy should serve Africa first and others second. Who is better positioned to understand the social, societal, environmental and economic realities of Africa than Africans themselves? America, China and Europe are perhaps genuinely trying to help. But they are trying to do so on their own terms using their old knowledge which has created the challenges we have today. Globalization through neo-liberalism and big-private-business-knows-best is now actively being questioned, even within some of the temples of this old religion. The world needs transformation in economic thinking and needs to act accordingly. Africa’s Blue Economy could be one pathway to securing a continent’s sovereignty over development decisions and pathways, and economic approaches and goals. It might also teach the world a new way of doing things that seeks to benefit the many (if not all) while protecting our shared planet.
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