By RISE UP
Before the 11th Our Ocean Conference opened its doors, members of the RISE UP network gathered in Mombasa for a working session. Small-scale fishers’ associations, Indigenous Peoples’ organisations, youth networks and civil society groups came together in one room ahead of the main conference. A small gathering before a very large one.
The purpose was simple: to strengthen collective advocacy, align community voices, and arrive at OOC11 with something closer to a shared front than scattered positions.
RISE UP Director Flora McMorrin opened the session by setting out that purpose. A panel moderated by Sivaja Nair with Zoila Bustamante of ULAPA, Barkha Mossae of IUCN, Ailars David of SOA Tanzania and Ekolu Lindsey of Maui Cultural Land & One Oceania framed the days ahead around four pillars: communities and marine conservation, the ocean–climate nexus, sustainable small-scale fisheries, and ocean governance and accountability.
Across the discussion, one thread was consistent. Conservation only works when it is built with communities, not around them. And pledges carry little weight without mechanisms that make them real.
Dr Paubert Mahatante, Associate Professor at Toliara University in Madagascar and Ocean Resilience and Climate Alliance Champion, closed the session with a line that set the tone for the week:
“Let us rise up for the ocean, lock arms as a unified front, and ensure our shared voice is impossible to ignore.”
No More Empty Pledges
Out of that room came a shared statement: No More Empty Pledges. Now signed by RISE UP and more than 20 partner organisations across Africa, Asia and Latin America, alongside Indigenous Peoples’ groups, youth networks and a sub-national government, it sets out three core demands:
- bring communities into decisions before they are made, not after
- back commitments with enforcement that has teeth
- ensure financing is transparent enough to actually reach where it is intended
It is one page among hundreds of conversations and commitments at the conference. But it gives the coalition something clear to hold onto. A shared marker for accountability when follow-through is tested.
Signals Worth Watching
Across the conference, a number of themes stood out, as indicators of where pressure and possibility are building.
Deep-Sea Mining: Growing African Momentum
Kenya and Madagascar’s support for a precautionary pause, alongside Malawi’s earlier position, marks a notable shift in African positioning on deep-sea mining. With Malawi the first African country to take this step, three governments have now moved in quick succession.
Globally, 43 governments now back a pause, moratorium or ban ahead of the International Seabed Authority meetings in July. The emerging African alignment is significant, but still early. The question now is whether this momentum broadens regionally and translates into sustained positioning ahead of exploitation decisions.
Small-Scale Fisheries: Communities Gain Ground
Two commitments stood out. Senegal pledged to extend its inshore exclusion zone from six to twelve nautical miles, effectively covering its entire territorial sea and closing it to industrial fishing. The Union of Comoros committed to establishing Artisanal Stewardship Areas across all territorial waters, with community-managed zones to be legally recognised.
These shifts reflect long-standing demands from small-scale fisheries movements: stronger preferential access and protection from industrial encroachment, and governance that centres those most dependent on these waters.
BBNJ: From Ratification to Implementation
With the High Seas Treaty now in force, attention in Mombasa shifted from celebration to implementation. A session convened by the High Seas Alliance brought together governments including South Africa, Senegal, Germany and the EU to discuss next steps on High Seas marine protected areas.
The message was consistent: the treaty is only a starting point. Its value will depend on whether it can be translated into real protection at sea, supported by governance structures, financing and capacity.
A Record Number of Commitments
Across the conference, governments, businesses, philanthropies and civil society organizations announced 320 new commitments valued at approximately USD 6.4 billion, making OOC11 the largest commitment round in the conference’s history.
As host country, Kenya accounted for roughly USD 1 billion of these commitments, with major investments directed toward fisheries monitoring, marine conservation and the expansion of marine protected areas.
Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing remained a recurring concern throughout the conference. Estimated to cost African economies between USD 11 and 13 billion annually, IUU fishing was frequently cited as a key challenge requiring stronger regional cooperation, monitoring and enforcement.
Reflecting this priority, 15 countries endorsed the Mombasa Declaration, committing to greater transparency in fisheries governance, improved information sharing and stronger measures to combat IUU fishing through enhanced regional and international cooperation.
The Bottom Line
A conference of this scale is shaped by hundreds of organisations, governments and communities.
What matters is what happens next: whether community perspectives remain at the centre of decision-making, and whether commitments made in Mombasa hold up against what follows: such as the International Seabed Authority meetings in July, the wider multilateral negotiations across climate and biodiversity, and the test of High Seas Treaty implementation.
The job now is simple, but not easy: stay present, keep pushing for inclusion and watch whether pledges become practice.