Photo: Stockfile/FIS

Catalyzing Ocean and Biodiversity Protection: Panama Tackles Illegal Fishing While High Ambition Coalition Launches Rapid Funding

SOUTH KOREA
Wednesday, April 30, 2025, 03:00 (GMT + 9)

At the Our Ocean Conference 2025, Panama strengthens vessel transparency to combat IUU fishing, and the HAC for Nature and People unveils a $500,000+ grant mechanism to accelerate global 30x30 targets.

The 2025 Our Ocean Conference in Busan, Republic of Korea, witnessed significant advancements in global ocean governance and biodiversity protection. Panama announced a strengthened commitment to combating illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing by tackling the issue of "invisible" vessel owners. Simultaneously, the High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People (HAC for N&P) launched its Rapid Deployment Mechanism, a transformative initiative providing over half a million dollars in small-scale grants to developing nations to accelerate the implementation of the global "30x30" biodiversity goals.

Panama's announcement, lauded by Global Fishing Watch CEO Tony Long, underscores the nation's ambition to establish clearer and more accessible vessel ownership records through improved data collection and digitization. This move signifies a critical step towards achieving ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) transparency, enhancing accountability within its fleet, and bolstering overall ocean governance. The ability to identify the true individuals profiting from fishing operations is recognized as a cornerstone of effective and transparent ocean management, crucial for achieving sustainable ocean goals and a fundamental pillar of the Coalition for Fisheries Transparency’s Global Transparency Charter.

Without UBO transparency, Flag States often struggle to effectively sanction those truly benefiting from illegal fishing, allowing unscrupulous actors to evade accountability, threaten marine biodiversity, and negatively impact law-abiding fishers. Panama's renewed commitment involves strengthening due diligence by verifying vessel ownership and reviewing UBO information during license granting procedures, aligning with international best practices to usher in a new era of accountability. This commitment serves as a powerful example of good ocean governance for other nations, particularly as the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC) approaches in June, offering an opportunity for Member States to follow suit and drive a transparency revolution in ocean governance.

Photo: courtesy Global Fishing Watch

In a parallel effort to protect the planet's biodiversity, the High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People (HAC for N&P), building on its 2024 Earthshot Prize win, proudly announced the official launch of its Rapid Deployment Mechanism. This new mechanism will provide swift, small-scale grants ranging between $25,000 and $50,000 to developing country members committed to the ambitious goal of protecting 30% of the planet’s land, inland waters, and ocean by 2030, as outlined in Target 3 of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. With less than five years remaining to achieve this target and current protection levels at 8.4% of the ocean and 17.6% of land and inland waters, this rapid support is considered catalytic.

Rita El-Zaghloul, Director of the HAC for Nature and People, emphasized that the mechanism directly addresses the urgent need for flexible support to translate ambition into action, empowering local actors and national governments with early-stage funding to unlock momentum for impactful conservation. Jason Knauf, CEO of The Earthshot Prize, lauded the HAC for N&P for realizing its vision through the prize funding, demonstrating the capacity to meet the global challenge of protecting and restoring nature and oceans.

The Rapid Deployment Mechanism will focus on high-impact, country-driven initiatives, supporting a wide range of activities related to the development and implementation of the 30x30 target. This includes supporting public policy through the development of national roadmaps and conservation strategies, defining effective policies for Protected Areas and Other Effective Conservation Measures (OECMs), and capacity building within countries through assessments, stakeholder engagement, national workshops, and training on key themes like governance, inclusion, management effectiveness, and monitoring.

The mechanism will also support the mapping of potential protected areas and OECMs, the development of regulatory frameworks, and the financing of small-scale implementation projects. Furthermore, it aims to build partnerships by providing spaces for country-to-country best practice exchanges and initiating sustainable finance mechanisms. Initially, the Mechanism will fund 10 countries, with the goal of expanding to 30 countries over the next five years, prioritizing projects with clear ambition, feasibility, added value, and potential for scale. Funds will be channeled through local NGOs in collaboration with national governments to ensure effective delivery and transparent management. 

Eligible applicants include HAC for N&P’s developing country members, with a strong emphasis on geographical and ecosystem balance. The Rapid Deployment Mechanism Advisory Group will oversee allocation decisions. This initiative provides vital seed capital to unlock larger investments and technical partnerships, working alongside the larger Matchmaking Platform of the HAC for N&P. Initial funding is provided by The Earthshot Prize, with further contributions anticipated. Applications for the first funding round opened on April 28, 2025.

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