Concept Note for the GEF-7 Child Project on "Building and Enhancing Sectoral and Cross-Sectoral Capacity to Support Sustainable Resource Use and Biodiversity Conservation in Marine Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction" (the Cross-Sectoral Project). 

Concept Note for the GEF-7 Child Project on " Strengthening the Stewardship of an Economically and Biologically Significant High Seas Area – the Sargasso Sea" (the Sargasso Sea Project). 

Concept Note for the GEF-7 Child Project on "Global Coordination for the Common Oceans ABNJ Program" (the Global Coordination Project).

Far from land, outside national boundaries, marine Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction or common oceans make up 40% of our planet. They hold 95% of our oceans’ water, and host some of the world’s most complex ecosystems. Ecosystems that help control climate, boost food security and help people make a living. Using common oceans resources sustainably and responsibly is challenging, but achievable. With the Global Environmental Fund’s support, FAO’s Common Oceans Programme is working with a wide range of partners to sustainably use and protect these fragile marine ecosystems.

The Common Oceans ABNJ Program brought together global stakeholders and partners to promote the sustainable use of fisheries and the protection of marine biodiversity in the ABNJ. The Program, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), involved the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Bank Group (WBG), as well as Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (RFMOs) and other intergovernmental organizations, national governments, the private sector, civil society and academia. This report presents the results obtained by the Common Oceans ABNJ Program between 2014-2019. It highlights the value, importance and benefits of sustainably managing fisheries and biodiversity conservation in the ABNJ, and how the collateral impact of fishing is less harmful to the marine environment now than when the program started out in 2014.