As host of the first Our Ocean Conference in Africa, Kenya could pursue a three-pronged strategy to achieve decisive ocean action.

The ocean’s balance sheet is in the red: humanity is extracting resources faster than the sea can replenish, while polluting it to unsustainable levels.

In June, world leaders will gather in Mombasa for the 11th Our Ocean Conference (OOC) – the first time the meeting is held on African soil. This is a strategic opportunity for Kenya to shape a common position for a continent that bears the ocean’s burdens but reaps few of its benefits.

The conference mobilises voluntary commitments for sustainable ocean management. Since its launch by the United States in 2014, it has generated over 2 000 pledges worth more than US$100-billion for marine protection, climate resilience, pollution reduction, the blue economy and maritime security. Yet past conferences have drawn headlines for ambitious pledges that fade into paperwork.

If OOC 2026 can shift from promises to scalable projects, it could redefine Africa’s role in global ocean diplomacy.

A renewed maritime awareness is urgent as African waterways gain heightened relevance in the wake of the Iran war. Disruptions in Red Sea shipping have exposed vulnerabilities in global trade, fertiliser imports and regional food security.

Over the past decade, Kenya has built a strong legacy on ocean governance, from hosting the 2018 Sustainable Blue Economy Conference to co-hosting the 2022 United Nations Ocean Conference with Portugal.

In 2023, Kenya hosted the inaugural Africa Climate Summit and negotiations for a global treaty to end plastic pollution. This diplomacy has been complemented with domestic measures such as banning plastic bags, investing in maritime trade through Mombasa and Lamu, and the country’s National Blue Economy Strategy.

Kenya can use OOC 2026 to raise Africa’s voice in three interlinked domains: governing and securing the continent’s exclusive economic zones (EEZs), projecting leadership beyond national jurisdiction, and unlocking the ocean-climate-finance nexus.

First, Africa’s combined EEZs cover about 13-million km², spanning vital shipping routes and rich biodiversity. These waters provide food security for hundreds of millions of people but remain vulnerable to illegal fishing, smuggling and pollution.

Progress on concrete measures such as joint patrols and shared information centres is patchy. Too often, donors and military partners define the agenda, leaving African priorities underfunded. OOC 2026 should shift the framing: maritime security is not just a naval concern but a question of governance and equity.

Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing drains over US$10-billion in revenue annually in Africa – comparable to losses from illicit mining or oil bunkering. A Kenya-led OOC initiative could expand regional patrols and link maritime enforcement to national development plans, tax systems and local livelihoods, showing how safer seas sustain more stable states.

Kenya can also use OOC 2026 to champion a regenerative blue economy defined not by foreign investment targets, but by regional and global commitments that curb exploitative practices. A meaningful agenda should integrate fisheries, tourism and offshore energy within community-centred models that regenerate and protect marine, coastal and ocean ecosystems.

The Western Indian Ocean’s Great Blue Wall initiative shows how coastal governance can combine livelihoods with ecosystem protection. That message would resonate across coastal Africa, where the gap between blue economy visions and realities persists.

Second, ocean currents, migratory species, pollution and climate impacts move freely between coastal zones and areas beyond national jurisdiction – the high seas and deep seabed. Decisions about fishing, mining and conservation in these areas directly affect the health of Africa’s coastal ecosystems, economies and communities.

Global negotiations are intensifying over how to manage the high seas and deep seabed. The recent activation of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement (BBNJ) will shape how benefits from marine genetic resources are shared and how these areas are conserved and sustainably used.

In parallel, deep-sea mining decisions by the International Seabed Authority will determine whether the seabed is governed for the profit of a few or through transparent, science-based decision making for the benefit of humankind.

Although deep-sea mining and BBNJ follow distinct institutional tracks, choices in one regime will affect ecosystems, governance norms and equity debates in the other. Africa needs to engage coherently across both.

On deep-sea mining, no African country has yet articulated a clear official position, despite the ecological, economic and cultural implications for the continent. This silence persists even as scientists warn that the industry could irreversibly damage fragile deep-sea ecosystems, fisheries and carbon sinks that underpin food security and climate resilience.

Other African priorities can also be amplified at OOC 2026. As talks on a global plastics treaty advance, Kenya could spearhead a common African stance that cuts production at source while protecting informal recyclers and coastal communities.

With major governance decisions pending at the International Seabed Authority, OOC 2026 is Africa’s chance to advocate for precaution, science and fairness, and a balance between resource equity and ecological stewardship.

Finally, the ocean-climate-finance nexus links the continent’s coastal security and sustainability ambitions. Rising sea levels, warming and acidification threaten infrastructure and livelihoods, yet research shows that mangroves, seagrasses and coral reefs are crucial natural defences and carbon stores. But these assets still attract limited dedicated finance, and access to ocean-centred green funding remains slow and fragmented.

OOC 2026 can help secure bankable proposals for global climate funds, blue bonds and debt‑for‑nature swaps. For African countries to generate their own ocean data and expertise rather than import it, support must be secured for African marine science and observation networks. An ocean knowledge hub could close the science-policy gap by linking research institutes with regional platforms such as the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association.

To ensure that OOC 2026 delivers for Africa and the ocean, preparation must begin now. The African Union should coordinate efforts, building on its experience in BBNJ negotiations. Achieving consensus will be difficult and uneven, but Kenya is well placed to move Africa forward.

Written by David Willima, Researcher, Climate Risk and Human Security, ISS Pretoria