LAST week, I attended the Makati Business Club’s forum with British Ambassador Sarah Hulton. The ambassador discussed some of the geopolitical and economic shocks being experienced by the world, in relation to the United Kingdom’s role in enhancing security throughout the globe. In particular, Ambassador Hulton described the Philippines as one of the world’s most megabiodiverse nations, at the forefront of using nature to drive both climate resilience and economic growth. When I invited her to help promote British investment in Philippine development, specifically through our infrastructure and ports, she stressed the importance of this to be an avenue for the development of the Philippines’ “blue economy.”
Understanding blue economies
Blue economies are hinged on the use of marine resources to promote economic growth. For these systems to succeed, they must do so without destroying the ecosystems that make that growth possible. It is the confluence of economic development, environmental protection, and social inclusion. Developing blue economies is prevalent among island nations; however, these strategies can also be adopted by any nation with a significant coastline. Industries tied to blue economies can include fisheries, aquaculture, marine tourism, marine biotechnology, ports and logistics, as well as coastal urban development.
Several countries around the world have adopted blue economy strategies in their efforts to guide their development. Examples include Vietnam, China, Kenya, Costa Rica and Portugal. For these nations, their efforts to promote a blue economy are primarily hinged on developing sustainable practices for their fisheries industries and aquaculture projects.
Quantifying a blue neconomy for PH
It is shocking to me that the Philippines does not have any formal blue economy policies as part of our national development agenda. We have the largest marine biodiversity in the world; how can we not take advantage of this privilege? Blue economies are still a new concept to our country, and would require a great deal of reforms and cooperation from public and private actors.
One must view the archipelago as a continuous maritime domain, revealing a vast, underutilized resource base. The main driver for a Philippine blue economy would be the country’s geographic scale. Our exclusive economic zone (EEZ) alone vastly outperforms our terrestrial landmass — measuring 2,263,816 square kilometers relative to the 300,000 sq km of the Philippines’ landmass. Our coastline measures 36,000 km, longer than the coastlines of China, Japan, or the United States.
Data from the Philippine Ocean Economy Satellite Accounts (Poesa) of the Philippine Statistics Authority show that ocean-based industries reached a valuation of about P1.01 trillion in 2024, contributing roughly 3.8 percent to GDP and employing around 2.39 million Filipinos, or nearly 5 percent of the national workforce. More importantly, about 62 percent of the population lives in coastal areas, making ocean health directly tied to national productivity and livelihoods. This growing importance is reinforced by institutional support, including a $500 million policy-based loan from the Asian Development Bank aimed at embedding blue economy strategy and climate resilience into the country’s development framework.
To translate this into real growth, the focus is shifting toward industrial expansion and unified governance. While fisheries and aquaculture play a vital role in contributing to the nation’s blue economy, high-value sectors such as shipbuilding, marine manufacturing, coastal logistics and offshore renewable energy present strong opportunities to move beyond extractive industries into value-added production. At the same time, reforms are addressing longstanding fragmentation in ocean governance. Measures like the proposed Blue Economy Act aim to establish a centralized Blue Economy Council, while the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System Act integrates environmental assets into national accounting. Together, these shifts signal a transition toward treating marine ecosystems not just as resources, but as managed economic capital within a coordinated national system.
These endeavors by the Philippine government could yield master plans that can assess the country’s zones for fisheries, aquaculture, marine tourism, marine biodiversity, marine protected areas, shipping lanes, ports and areas for potential offshore energy development. Government agencies like the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Energy, and Philippine Coast Guard can operate under a unified marine zoning management map.
A long journey ahead
Should the Philippines have a working blue economy, we would see a rise in the efficiency and production of our fisheries, efficient coastal logistics operations, decreased coastal disasters, better interisland connectivity, expanded offshore energy supply, strengthened marine tourism and better livelihood stability for coastal communities. Alternatively, the nation’s ambitions toward a blue economy will fail if we continue to tolerate activities like illegal fishing, uncontrolled coastal land use conversion, indiscriminate resource extraction activities, and planning for electoral cycles and not long-term national development.
Architect-urban planner Felino “Jun” Palafox Jr. has 53 years of experience in architecture and 51 years in planning. He was educated at Christ the King Seminary, UST, UP, and Harvard. He founded Palafox Associates and Palafox Architecture Group, with more than 2,000 projects in 41 countries, and is recognized with 200 plus awards, including UAP Dubai Awards First Lifetime Achievement Award (2023).
