Master plan is close to completion

DFFE confirms gaps are being closed

SOUTH AFRICA: Welcoming members of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on board the SA Agulhas II last week, Nonhlanhla Mkhize, DDG: Environmental Programmes at the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) hinted at the imminent completion of the long-awaited Ocean Economy Master Plan.

“The Ocean Economy Master Plan (OEMP) will soon be sent to Cabinet,” she said while emphasising the range of skills that need to be developed to respond to the ocean economy. She noted that, despite the department’s overarching mandate to protect the environment, they do recognise the opportunities to develop the ocean economy.

Efforts to create the OEMP were initiated in 2019 as an outcome of Operation Phakisa. The plan expands on the work that was first undertaken under Phakisa which was launched in 2014.

Now, more than a decade, after the “quick fast results” intervention was launched, the industry has become frustrated at the slow pace of government response to the three-foot plans that aimed to provide an impetus for growth across identified priority areas.

Recognising that the OEMP still had “substantial gaps,” the DFFE issued a tender to identify service providers who could finalise the document.

Speaking to Mkhize during the SA Agulhas II during the trip to Cape Town from East London, she confirmed that the bids received had been “non-responsive” and that the department had decided to undertake the finalisation of the document inhouse with some support from external sources and universities.

“We were unable to identify a service provider that could undertake the project and there was no time to start afresh with a further bid,” she explained.

When pressed on how the process to finalise the OEMP was progressing, she said that gaps in stakeholder engagements had been identified and completed. She also added that Transnet, the South African Maritime Safety Authority as well as FishSA had been important stakeholders in this finalisation process.

“Once finalised, the plan will include clear implementation plans for each of the priority areas with time frames that identify what is achievable in the short, medium and long term,” she added.

According to Mkhize, the OEMP will be submitted by June this year to cabinet for approval.

PHOTO: Nonhlanhla Mkhize, DDG: Environmental Programmes at the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) spoke to Maritime Review during the trip on the SA Agulhas II from East London to Cape Town last week. (© Maritime Review)

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