Ocean City: A Journey towards Blue Economy

Abstraksi

As a maritime nation, Indonesia is blessed with vast ocean and abundant marine resources. In Indonesia, around 2.8 million households are directly involved in the marine commodity industry. With about 54% of Indonesia’s animal protein consumption coming from the ocean and Indonesia being the supplier for about 10% of global marine commodities, it’s undeniable that the ocean and its resources are essential to the life of millions of Indonesians. The ocean holds Indonesia’s future, as our economy, livelihoods and way of life are dependent on it. As we rely on the ocean to support our existence, we must learn to utilize the ocean in ways that reverse the declining condition of its health, and ensure that the ocean resources are available for future generations. Hence, how do we maximize ocean potentials for economic growth without harming the marine ecosystem and resources? The answer relies on a better ocean planning. However to achieve a sustainable future and outcome of Indonesia’s ocean, the government needs to go beyond a simple spatial planning. This is where the establishment of Ocean City comes in. Ocean City is the new frontier of developing a city based on marine resources, using sustainable approaches and inclusive economic growth in mind. It is an integrated city system where the citizen work and benefit from the coastal resources. The ocean city relies on three main pillars: renewable energy, clean water and connectivity. Renewable energy can be achieved by extracting the energy from ocean waves. The waves can be used to generate electricity for the city. As clean water is essential for a sustainable living, the Ocean City ensures the availability of clean water by collecting and recycling rainwater and river water, treating sewage water, and desalinating 10% of the rest. Lastly, connectivity is divided into two parts, which are physical and digital. The Ocean City ensures physical connectivity by providing ocean infrastructures transportation as well as digital connectivity by providing internet access to the all citizens. All of this pillars are essential to ensure the well-being of people who work and rely on ocean resources without harming the environment. For example, by providing a better infrastructure and connectivity of fisher folk, it will open new opportunities for them to expand their business. Is it possible for Indonesia to establish Ocean City? The answer is yes. Since 2015 Indonesia has made significant progress in developing our ocean, thanks to Susi Pudjiastuti’s integrity and firm actions in combating Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) Fishing. The progress in combating IUU have open new opportunities to increase the productivity and development of the ocean. As the productivity increases, so does the economic growth. New job opportunities, chances to increase entrepreneurship, even developing the ocean infrastructure can be achieved through the establishment of Ocean City. Thus, this paper is going to elaborate the idea of Ocean City and how to use above mentioned sustainable pillars: renewable energy, clean water and connectivity can lead Indonesia towards Blue Economy.