Harnessing the Potentials of the Blue Economy for Kenyaâ??s Sustainable Development
World Maritime University
Download
Abstract: In the recent past, Kenya had taken steps to diversify the countryâ??s Blue Economy resources for creation of jobs and enhance food security as well as spur economic growth. However, full potential exploitation of these resources had not been realized, due to lack of coherence in policy framework, legislation and resource management between State Departments and Agencies responsible for Blue Economy. This was further exacerbated by having traditional and non-traditional blue economy sectors without better alignment. Also, there was no clear balance between ocean resources exploitation and sustainability which is one of the United Nations Sustainable Goals, namely, Goal 14 which informs Vision 2030 blueprint for protecting living and nonliving resources. The objectives of the study were to establish why Integrated National Maritime Policy (INMP) had never been jumpstarted in the maritime sector, identify levels of success as well as challenges facing the maritime sector and best practices undertaken in successful maritime nations. Google Forms was used to administer the questionnaire with open and closed ended questions. Simple random sampling was used to select respondents from State Departments and Agencies responsible for blue Economy. While a target of 35 respondents was set, 32 responded. Qualitative data and quantitative data were analyzed using thematic content analysis and descriptive statistics respectively. Microsoft Excel was used for data analysis and presentation through the use of tables, bar charts, pie charts, percentages and frequencies. The study established that for Kenya to achieve full potential and sustainable exploitation of the blue economy resources to spur economic growth and development, the INMP should be implemented to bring coherence within State Departments and Agencies mandated to execute the blue economy agenda. Kenya should also adopt international best practices on legislation and policies to ensure the growth of the blue economy.