The CBC 30×30 Plus Marine Action Plan was publicly unveiled at the Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa: A subregional framework approved by five Caribbean countries and territories seeks to accelerate the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework’s 30×30 target in the Greater Antilles
Mombasa, Kenya, June 18, 2026 – The Caribbean Biological Corridor (CBC) today publicly unveiled its 30×30 Plus Marine Action Plan, a pioneering regional framework to drive marine conservation and sustainable ocean management in the Greater Antilles.
The announcement took place during the high-level reception “Raising Ambition and Financing in the Wider Caribbean: High-Level Ocean Leaders Reception,” held in the Baraza room of the Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort & Spa, as part of the Our Ocean Conference taking place in Mombasa.
Organized in partnership with the Government of Jamaica, the Wider Caribbean Ocean Coordination Mechanism (OCM), the Blue Nature Alliance, and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the reception brought together ministers, donors, philanthropic organizations, and technical partners with the aim of accelerating the implementation of Target 3 of the Global Biodiversity Framework and moving from commitments to action.
The 30×30 Plus Marine Action Plan constitutes a shared commitment among the countries and territories that make up the Greater Antilles to effectively protect their extraordinary marine biodiversity through cooperation beyond national borders.
The Plan offers a practical framework for implementing the commitments adopted in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the Caribbean Actioning Blue Declaration, while responding to some of the region’s most important conservation challenges.
The Greater Antilles encompass nearly 1.5 million square kilometers of marine space and harbor some of the Caribbean’s most important coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass meadows, and deep-sea ecosystems. However, marine conservation remains uneven across the region, with significant conservation gaps in oceanic and deep-sea areas, among the least explored and least protected ecosystems in the Caribbean.
During the segment dedicated to strategic partner perspectives, Pamela Castillo, 30×30 Director at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), highlighted the importance of regional partnerships and the long-standing collaboration between WCS and the CBC to promote science-based marine conservation.
“At WCS, we are very proud to have supported marine conservation in the Caribbean through our Cuba Program since 1996. And we are especially proud of our close collaboration with the Caribbean Biological Corridor, an initiative that brings together countries and territories of the Greater Antilles and has enabled us to support and advance this exceptional Marine Action Plan, recently approved by the CBC Ministerial Committee.”
Representing the CBC Secretariat, Dr. Nicasio Viña Dávila, Executive Secretary of the Caribbean Biological Corridor, presented the main elements of the Plan and invited governments, donors, and partners to join its implementation.
“Today, after the announcement that Jamaica will host the Our Ocean Conference in 2029, the Caribbean’s ambition for marine conservation has risen significantly.
But our commitment to action and to achieving concrete results has also risen.
This implies that by 2029 we must significantly increase the effective implementation of marine conservation measures and improve our outcomes, demonstrating to the world that the Caribbean is not only capable of making ambitious commitments, but also of turning them into tangible and measurable realities.”
“The CBC 30×30 Plus Marine Action Plan is our practical tool for turning global and regional commitments into concrete actions,” said Dr. Viña-Dávila. “This Plan is called 30×30 Plus because it is not only about reaching a percentage of protection. It is about effective management. It is about science. It is about ecological connectivity. It is about ensuring that conservation improves people’s lives and strengthens the resilience of our islands.”
Dr. Viña-Dávila emphasized that the approval of the Plan marks the beginning of a new stage of regional cooperation.
“Our governments have made a commitment. Now we invite partners and donors to help us transform this vision into reality,” he stated. “Protecting our shared ocean is a Caribbean responsibility, but it is also a global investment in nature, resilience, and hope.”
The CBC Secretariat also announced that the implementation of the Plan has already begun, including new partnerships aimed at closing critical scientific knowledge gaps in priority areas for the CBC. In this regard, the Secretariat welcomed the recent announcement by the REV Ocean Foundation that its upcoming research season will contribute to addressing important scientific and conservation priorities in the Wider Caribbean.
The 30×30 Plus Marine Action Plan establishes a common agenda for governments and an open invitation to donors, technical partners, communities, and the private sector to work together in building a connected, representative, and effectively managed network of marine protected and conserved areas in the Greater Antilles.
About the Caribbean Biological Corridor (CBC)
The Caribbean Biological Corridor is an intergovernmental cooperation platform that promotes the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in the countries and territories that make up the Greater Antilles. For almost two decades, the CBC has fostered South-South cooperation and coordinated actions to protect shared terrestrial and marine ecosystems, strengthen resilience to climate change, and promote sustainable development in the Greater Antilles.
ENGLISH
CBC Marine Action Plan 30×30 Plus Publicly Unveiled at the Our Ocean Conference in Mombasa
A subregional framework approved by five Caribbean countries and territories aims to accelerate the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework’s 30×30 target in the Greater Antilles
Mombasa, Kenya, 18 June 2026 – The Caribbean Biological Corridor (CBC) today publicly unveiled its Marine Action Plan 30×30 Plus, a pioneering regional framework to advance marine conservation and sustainable ocean management in the Greater Antilles.
The announcement was made during the “Raising Ambition and Financing in the Wider Caribbean: High-Level Ocean Leaders Reception,” held at the Baraza Conference Room of the Sarova Whitesands Beach Resort & Spa, as part of the Our Ocean Conference taking place in Mombasa.
Organized in partnership with the Government of Jamaica, the Wider Caribbean Ocean Coordination Mechanism (OCM), the Blue Nature Alliance, and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), the reception brought together ministers, donors, philanthropic organizations and technical partners with the goal of accelerating the implementation of Target 3 of the Global Biodiversity Framework and moving from commitments to action.
The Marine Action Plan 30×30 Plus represents a shared commitment among the countries and territories that make up the Greater Antilles to effectively protect their extraordinary marine biodiversity through cooperation beyond national boundaries.
The Plan provides a practical framework for implementing the commitments adopted under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the Caribbean Actioning Blue Declaration, while addressing some of the region’s most pressing conservation challenges.
The Greater Antilles encompass nearly 1.5 million square kilometres of marine space and harbour some of the Caribbean’s most important coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass meadows and deep-sea ecosystems. Yet marine conservation remains uneven across the region, with significant conservation gaps in offshore and deep-sea areas, among the least explored and least protected ecosystems in the Caribbean.
During the session devoted to strategic partner perspectives, Pamela Castillo, 30×30 Director at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), highlighted the importance of regional partnerships and the longstanding collaboration between WCS and the CBC in advancing science-based marine conservation.
“At WCS, we are very proud to have supported marine conservation in the Caribbean through our Cuba Program since 1996. We are especially proud of our close collaboration with the Caribbean Biological Corridor, an initiative that brings together countries and territories of the Greater Antilles and has enabled us to support and advance this exceptional Marine Action Plan, recently approved by the CBC Ministerial Committee.”
Representing the CBC Secretariat, Dr. Nicasio Viña-Dávila, Executive Secretary of the Caribbean Biological Corridor, presented the main elements of the Plan and invited governments, donors and partners to join its implementation.
“Today, following the announcement that Jamaica will host the Our Ocean Conference in 2029, the Caribbean’s ambition for marine conservation has risen significantly.
But so too has our commitment to action and to delivering tangible results.
This means that by 2029 we must significantly increase the effective implementation of marine conservation measures and improve our outcomes, demonstrating to the world that the Caribbean is not only capable of making ambitious commitments, but also of turning them into tangible and measurable realities.”
“The CBC Marine Action Plan 30×30 Plus is our practical tool for turning global and regional commitments into concrete actions,” said Dr. Viña-Dávila. “This Plan is called 30×30 Plus because it is not only about reaching a percentage of protection. It is about effective management. It is about science. It is about ecological connectivity. It is about ensuring that conservation improves people’s lives and strengthens the resilience of our islands.”
Dr. Viña-Dávila emphasized that the approval of the Plan marks the beginning of a new phase of regional cooperation.
“Our governments have made a commitment. Now we invite partners and donors to help us transform this vision into reality,” he said. “Protecting our shared ocean is a Caribbean responsibility, but it is also a global investment in nature, resilience and hope.”
The CBC Secretariat also announced that implementation of the Plan has already begun, including new partnerships aimed at closing critical scientific knowledge gaps in priority areas for the CBC. In this regard, the Secretariat welcomed the recent announcement by the REV Ocean Foundation that its upcoming research season will contribute to addressing important scientific and conservation priorities in the Wider Caribbean.
The Marine Action Plan 30×30 Plus establishes a common agenda for governments and an open invitation to donors, technical partners, communities and the private sector to work together in building a connected, representative and effectively managed network of marine protected and conserved areas across the Greater Antilles.
About the Caribbean Biological Corridor (CBC)
The Caribbean Biological Corridor is an intergovernmental cooperation platform that promotes the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity in the countries and territories that make up the Greater Antilles. For nearly two decades, the CBC has fostered South-South cooperation and coordinated actions to protect shared terrestrial and marine ecosystems, strengthen resilience to climate change, and promote sustainable development across the Greater Antilles.
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