The 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice, France has concluded with clear ambitious and goals, and one of the most important factors being the key roles played by small island nations in shaping the Declarations and Action Plan.

UN reporter Heyi Zou reporting from Nice stated that small Island Nation communities are most vulnerable to rising seas and marine degradation, and their firsthand experience and leadership are essential to crafting effective, inclusive ocean policy.

Over 120 countries participated in the five-day UNOC3, signaling a growing recognition that ocean health is inseparable from climate stability, food security, and global equity.

Out of the 120 countries, 15 countries came from the South Pacific region, one of the most climate vulnerable region in the world.

15 South Pacific Countries and their proposed action plan

The 15 Island Nations included Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Tuvalu, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu.

These 15 Island Nations endorsed and aligned their marine strategies around the “30×30” target, which aims to conserve at least 30% of the world’s ocean by 2030.

The 30×30 pledge aims to promote sustainable fisheries, decarbonize maritime transport, and unlock new streams of “blue finance,” including ocean bonds and debt-for-nature swaps to support vulnerable coastal states.

French Polynesia announced the establishment of the world’s largest Marine Protected Area (MPA), encompassing its entire Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of nearly 5 million square kilometers. This initiative includes designating 1.1 million square kilometers as highly or fully protected zones, permitting only traditional fishing, ecotourism, and scientific exploration.

The move strategically aligns with International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) standards to combat harmful extractive activities like deep-sea mining and bottom-trawling, something that the U.S President Donald Trump has given the green light for operation.

The Pacific Island Nations collective ocean conservative efforts include Operation Kurukuru an annual maritime surveillance operation conducted by member countries to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing within their EEZs.

The program is coordinated by the Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), the operation involves joint patrols, aerial surveillance, and satellite monitoring, supported by Australia, New Zealand, France, and the United States.

Fiji reaffirmed its commitment to ocean protection by officially passing the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdictions (BBNJ) Agreement at the conference.

The Agreement focus on safeguarding the high seas through multilateral cooperation and protecting marine life beyond national jurisdiction.

Fiji joins Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu in this effort. The ratification was made possible through coordinated work led by the Maritime Affairs Coordinating Committee and supported by key national agencies.

Port Vila continued its campaign for a Just Transition to a Fossil Fuel-Free Pacific while Samoa pushed for the Apia Commonwealth Ocean Declaration.

The declaration was adopted in October 2024 by all 56 Commonwealth nations. The joint agreement calls for ratification of the High Seas Treaty, urgent action on a global plastics treaty, and recognition of maritime boundaries despite sea-level rise.

It emphasizes coastal climate adaptation, full sustainable management of national waters, reduced shipping emissions, and a major scale-up of marine renewable energy—all aimed at building a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable ocean future.

Samoa Prime Minister Tusitala said that the pact contains an explicit and assertive commitment, aligning with Pacific and Small Island Developing States in preserving
maritime zones despite sea-level rise.

Cook Islands Prime Minister, Honorable Mark Brown, during Ocean Action Panel said that the Pacific Islands region has long established and continuously evolving regional institutions and governance structures ” The Blue Pacific Continent” was to support collective outcomes for the ocean and its people.

PM Brown urges the UNOC3 members to learn from the “Pacific Way.”

Prime Minister Brown addressed the panel of behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), he reminded member of the conference that the regional ocean cooperation is not optional, It is a must.

“The Blue Pacific Ocean is both our shared identity and our shared responsibility,” he said, pointing to the Pacific region’s leadership on Ocean governance, the Pacific region, for instance, has collectively committed to managing 100% of the Blue Pacific Continent.”

Note: This feature was written with some data and information provided by OpenAI