Namibia's way to Marine Spatial Planning – Using existing practices or instigating its own approach?

Abstract

The territorial waters and EEZ of Namibia are part of the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem in the South-East Atlantic. Growing demands and conflicts emerge although the area is not as intensely used as marine areas elsewhere. Namibia has chosen Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) as an integrated approach to facilitate sustainable ocean development and improved ocean governance. The paper explores the reality of the Namibian MSP process to date by investigating two guiding research questions: (1) What makes the Namibian approach to MSP distinct? and (2) What are the opportunities and difficulties of the Namibian MSP process in that particular context? The country's approach to MSP features a series of distinct attributes, not least due to its unique environmental and socio-economic context. Namibian MSP is highly precautionary and forward-looking given the relatively low intensity of current uses, has a strong ecosystem-based perspective due to the fairly pristine environment, is driven by a social equity and distributive justice agenda, and features a strong collaborative process governance. Whilst challenges such as limited financial resources, lacking legislation and weak links to broader ocean governance exist, the MSP process, which was linked to a systematic conservation planning process from the outset, has however resulted in a clear framework for the development of the first marine plan.