Stakeholder seminar on Boosting Blue growth in the Adriatic and Ionian Region, Brussels 14 November 2013

The European Commission organised a stakeholder seminar on Boosting Blue growth in the Adriatic and Ionian Region: towards an Action Plan for the EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR). The seminar took place in Brussels, Belgium on 14 November 2013. The participants had the opportunity to debate on several thematic areas such as research and innovation, marine litter, maritime spatial planning, fisheries and aquaculture, maritime transport and surveillance, coastal and cruise tourism.

The event was also attended by INCA's representative, Mr. Zamir Dedej. He was part of the panel on "Spatial Planning and Integrated Coastal Zone Management". His intervention focused on giving those strategies a more practical sense by identifying concrete measures that have higher impact on the ground. Having seen the aggressiveness of human interventions in this area affected by the financial and economic crisis during the recent years, a concrete plan of activities should be prepared and implemented in the field, which includes concepts and lessons learned from developed countries. As a result, the forum accepted the idea to support the increase of marine protected areas and improving their management. It was also agreed that Albania needs to prepare a Plan for Integrated Coastal Zone Management, which should draw on the experience of countries in the region, especially from  Montenegro, which has recently adopted and is implementing a similar plan.