DFA Stirs Conversation on Need for Global Ratification of Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement

Honorable Secretary Enrique A. Manalo delivers a keynote message at the opening session of the BBNJ Symposium. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

MAKATI 04 September 2024 – The Department of Foreign Affairs held a symposium on the “Role of Legislature in Ensuring a Strong Regime for Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdictions or BBNJ Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea” at the Makati Diamond Residences on 29-30 August 2024.  

The Symposium aimed at exchanging views on the ways forward following the adoption by consensus by UN members of the BBNJ Agreement on 19 June 2023, breaking the nearly two decades of impasse in the preparatory work and negotiations.

The BBNJ Agreement, the third implementing agreement under UNCLOS, needs the ratification of at least 60 countries to enter into force.  The Philippines was among the seventy states that initially signed the BBNJ Agreement when it was first opened for signature on 20 June 2023, with the intention to become one of the early ratifiers of the multilateral treaty.

Speaking as resource persons across the five panels of the BBNJ Symposium, local and foreign subject matter experts shared their technical knowledge and expertise while invited Philippine legislators from the Senate and House of Representatives shared their keen insights through the legislative lens.  

The Symposium was attended by more than 100 participants from the Philippine and foreign governments, the Diplomatic Corps, civil society organizations, and the academe.

The DFA Maritime and Ocean Affairs Office (MOAO), and the Office of Policy Planning and Coordination (OPPC) organized the two-day symposium. END

DFA Assistant Secretary for Policy Planning and Coordination Patrick A. Chuasoto delivers welcome remarks. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

DFA Assistant Secretary for Maritime and Ocean Affairs Marshall Louis M. Alferez delivers closing remarks and synthesis. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

DFA Assistant Secretary Marshall Louis M. Alferez (rightmost) moderates Panel 1 (BBNJ Agreement: Why it Matters?) with panelists (from light left to right) Dr. Theresa Mundita S. Lim of the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity, Ms. Sarah L. Bales of the Philippine Council for Agriculture and Fisheries, and Ms. Rizza Sacra-Dejucos of the High Seas Alliance. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

DFA Spokesperson Her Excellency Ambassador Ma. Teresita C. Daza (leftmost) moderates Panel 2 (The Complementing Role of the Legislature in the Process of Ratifying and Implementing Multilateral Treaties and Advancing the Rule of Law in the Maritime Domain: The Case for the BBNJ Agreement) with panelists (from right to left) Mr. Eduardo Cavalcanti de Mello Filho of the National University of Singapore-Center for International Law, Antonio G. de Guzman, Jr. of the Office of the International Relations and Protocol of the Senate of the Philippines, and Mr. Alain Tellier of Global Affairs Canada (retired). (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

Her Excellency Ambassador Maria Angela A. Ponce (leftmost) moderates Panel 3 (Impact of the BBNJ Agreement on Maritime Policies of States and Relevant Regional Instruments, Frameworks, and Bodies) with panelists (from 2nd left to right) Honorable Senator Aquilino Pimentel III, Ms. Priya Bhanu of the US State Department, and Mr. Kenneth Wong of Singapore’s Attorney-General's Chambers. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

DA Undersecretary for Fisheries Drusila Esther E. Bayate (rightmost) moderates Panel 4 (The Race for BBNJ Ratification and Subsequent Implementation:  Challenges and Opportunities) with panelists (clockwise from bottom) Honorable Representative Maria Rachel J. Arenas, Dr. Marie Antonette Juinio-Meñez of the University of the Philippines-Marine Science Institute, and Dr. Shri N Saravanane of India’s Ministry of Earth Sciences. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)

Atty. Jacqueline Joyce F. Espenilla of the University of the Philippines-Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea moderates Panel 5 (Prospects for Inter-State Parliamentary Cooperation for a Strong BBNJ Regime in the Indo-Pacific) with panelists Honorable Senator Risa Hontiveros, and First Assistant Secretary Katrina Maguire of Australia’s Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water. (Photo by DFA-OPD, Johannes Adrian D. De Guia)