Kota Kinabalu: The Blue Economy is important for both Sabah and Asean’s future, thus member states must have accessible standards to share resources and expertise, said IPEC Foundation Managing Director Dr Juliana Lim.
“Standards, quality and certification means business,” said Juliana, who was among speakers at the 3rd Asean Blue Economy Forum held at the Sabah International Convention Centre, here, recently.
“Sabah has taken the initiative to set up the Blue Economy Standards, Quality Management, Accreditation and Metrology.
“This covers fisheries, marine biotech including pharmaceuticals, offshore renewables, eco-tourism, maritime logistics and ports management, among others,” she said in her talk titled “Blue Standard: The Role of Intellectual Property to Support Blue Economy”.
Juliana, whose journey with standards began nearly 25 years ago at her kitchen home in Tuaran, is no stranger to the practical challenges faced by small businesses and individual entrepreneurs.
“When we talk about policies, it is all very high level. What about my anchovies? What about my seaweed? I have done this design, I have this packaging but I am not able to export”, these are the questions among stakeholders.
What are the tools that enable them? What are the key? The answer, according to Juliana, lies in standards and certification systems.
“Standards and certification are one of the key to protecting intellectual property and enabling commercialisation by ensuring quality, traceability and credibility of products,” she said.
She pointed out how proper standards can fix the unequal market values in the industry.
“Yesterday we discussed why three pieces of anchovies can cost over RM10 in Europe and how we can help our local anchovies achieve similar market value.
“Standards and certifications can change the value by setting criteria and making markets more accessible,” she said.
She said that while global schemes like ISO standards and ecolabels exist, there is currently no specific certification mark for marine or blue economy products and services.
“When we talk about standards, we are actually talking about marks, the label on your products,” she said.
She proposed regional cooperation through Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRA), similar to Asean’s achievements in banking and tourism.
“Are Asean member states ready to harmonise the framework through MRA when the time comes? Such harmonisation takes a long journey,” she said.
She suggested that Sabah could serve as the secretariat for a BIMPEAGA Blue Economy Quality Centre of Excellence.
“This gives an opportunity for Sabah to contribute as a secretariat for this collaborative mission, complementing regional efforts to support all Asean member countries,” she said.
However, she acknowledged the difficulties ahead, saying, “It is not easy with the standards. The answer lies in the legacy we build for Sabah, for Asean and for future generations.”On immediate next steps, Juliana pointed out human capital development.
“The kick-start as part of Blue Economy intellectual capital is sustainable human capital development.
“I think Sabah has a lot of talent in the market that are at gear one, gear two. They want to accelerate to the next gear, human capital is very important.
“Thus, the power is now. If we do not start now, we might not see the immediate impact. It is about sustainable growth, regional cooperation and commitment to treat the power of now.
“Let us move forward together with unity, innovations and shared vision for our generation to come,” she said.
