Atlantic strategy

In 2011 the European Commission adopted an Atlantic Maritime Strategy in response to repeated calls from stakeholders for a more ambitious, open and effective cooperation in the Atlantic Ocean Area. The strategy, consistent with the EU 2020 agenda and its flagship initiatives, grouped the identified challenges and opportunities facing the Atlantic region under five main thematic headings.

The EU’s 2013-2020 Atlantic Action Plan set out practical steps to be taken in the 4 Member States with Atlantic coasts (Ireland, France, Portugal, Spain) and their outermost regions in order to boost the Atlantic Ocean Area’s sustainable blue economy by 2020.  Its priorities were:

Mid-Term Review – A Revised Atlantic Action Plan 2.0

The 2013 – 2020 Atlantic Action Plan underwent a mid-term review in 2017 in order to assess its performance and draw lessons from its implementation to pave the way for the future.  The Mid-term Review of the AAP, based on an independent study and a stakeholder consultation, found that by 2017 the plan had spurred over 1200 new maritime projects and nearly 6 billion euro of investments, an achievement that is visible in the EASME maritime datahub.  Based on the findings of the mid-term review, notably the potential of the action plan to create even more impact for the coastal economy, the European Commission took concrete steps in order to safely steer the Atlantic Maritime Strategy into a promising future.  A first series of workshops, revolving around themes identified as highly relevant for the Atlantic blue economy were held between September and November 2018 in the Atlantic Member States.

The revised Atlantic Action Plan 2.0 was communicated by the European Commission on 23 July 2020.  Its main objective is to unlock the potential of blue economy in the Atlantic area while preserving marine ecosystems and contributing to climate change adaptation and mitigation. Its aims are in line with the global commitments for sustainable development and are fully integrated in the European Commission’s political priorities for 2019 – 2024, notably a European Green Deal, an Economy that works for people and a stronger Europe in the world.

The Atlantic Action Plan 2.0 includes four pillars which represent a practical way to make the common vision a reality. All pillars are integrally interconnected and transregional by nature and address key challenges and aim to foster sustainable blue growth and contribute to greater territorial cooperation and cohesion in the EU Atlantic area.  The pillars focus on issues that one coastal region and one single State cannot solve alone or it is more efficient to act together and deliver on challenges that matter in the daily lives of people living in the coastal areas.

• Pillar I:   Ports as gateways and hubs for the blue economy 
• Pillar II:  Blue skills of the future and ocean literacy 
• Pillar III: Marine renewable energy 
• Pillar IV: Healthy ocean and resilient coasts