Bridging the Skills Gap: Coastal Jobs in a Growing Blue Economy

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As investment in the blue economy increases, the promise of economic revitalisation along coastlines is gaining traction. Annually, the ocean economy has an estimated turnover of between US$3 and 6 trillion, which includes employment, ecosystem services, and cultural services. Fisheries and aquaculture alone provide $US100 billion per year and add approximately 260 million jobs to the global economy.

The demand for blue economy workers is expanding fastest in sectors that require technical expertise, digital skills, and multidisciplinary experience. For instance, the wind energy sector in the EU alone can create 150,000 new jobs by 2030. In the Indian Ocean region, investments in port-led development and tourism under initiatives like India’s Sagarmala programme and Indonesia’s Tourism Development Project are expected to create hundreds of thousands of jobs. However, a persistent skills mismatch threatens to limit this growth. Many coastal communities lack access to training which equips them for emerging roles; without targeted interventions, the blue economy risks reproducing inequalities wherein high-value jobs go to external labour markets. One of the most effective ways to ensure that coastal communities can access and benefit from high-growth blue economy sectors is to invest in targeted and localised skills development programmes. Encouragingly, there are many successful examples of governments, industries, and training institutions working together with coastal youth to build skills needed for maritime sectors.

Without targeted interventions, the blue economy risks reproducing inequalities wherein high-value jobs go to external labour markets.

International Experiences and Learnings  

1. Denmark: Building Skills Pipelines for Wind Energy

Denmark's wind industry, which accounts for about 53.4 percent of the country's electricity generation, highlights the long-term payoff of sustained investment in skill development programmes. The sector employs over 33,000 people, and is underpinned by decades of training and apprenticeship programmes for both onshore and offshore wind. In addition, local cooperatives own a large part of wind-based electricity production capacity, providing additional income sources and building public support for more ambitious policies. Thus, in Denmark, bottom-up initiatives have helped adapt wind energy techniques to local interests, and top-down strategies have ensured market competitiveness.

Policy Recommendation

It is of utmost importance that countries that are investing in emerging blue economy sectors institutionalise vocational training pipelines. This could include offering wind energy, aquaculture, or port logistics training in national education curricula. In addition, providing incentives for industry-academia partnerships can also help ensure that training aligns with labour demand so as to reduce skill mismatches.

2. Indonesia: Expanding Coastal Tourism through Community-based Training 

In 2024, the Indonesian tourism sector accounted for an estimated 4.1 percent of the GDP, and is also projected to create more than 5 million new jobs over the next decade. Much of this growth is concentrated in coastal and marine tourism, which is also central to Indonesia’s Blue Economy Roadmap 2023-45. To ensure that the benefits of this expansion reach coastal communities, Indonesia utilises local training programmes extensively. In West Java, for instance, some initiatives offer workshops in handicrafts, hospitality management, transport rentals, and tour guiding to help small businesses and cooperatives become an integral part of the tourism value chain. Similarly, Green Fins Indonesia’s “Train the Trainer” programme equips local dive operators with environmental best practices and community engagement skills.

Policy Recommendation

Indonesia’s experience shows that tourism-led blue economy growth must go beyond creating jobs for local communities, enabling them to capture higher-value roles in emerging sectors. Training alone will prove insufficient if local communities are confined to low-value roles. Governments must scale cooperative-level training schemes, integrate business and digital skills in such programmes, and popularise the use of innovative financial mechanisms (microcredit, concessional loans, blended finance and tools) so that local communities can access credit to expand their businesses. Such an approach can ensure that national tourism growth programmes result in secure and high-quality employment for coastal communities, rather than reinforcing external dependence.

Denmark's wind industry, which accounts for about 53.4 percent of the country's electricity generation, highlights the long-term payoff of sustained investment in skill development programmes.

3. South Africa: Operation Phakisa and Large-Scale Job Creation 

Launched in 2014, South Africa’s Operation Phakisa was designed as a fast-track initiative to generate growth and employment in maritime sectors. The program identified several key focus areas, including marine transport and manufacturing, small harbours development, and coastal and marine tourism. The initiative has been partially successful. It has attracted investments in ship repair and maintenance, especially in port cities like Durban and Cape Town. The aquaculture sector has also seen significant growth, with revenue increasing from R0.67 billion to R3 billion in just five years (2014-19). However, progress has been uneven due to delays in regulatory approvals and environmental concerns. In addition, while the initiative set ambitious targets, it struggled with a skills mismatch. Many of the projected roles of engineers and marine technicians require advanced training that coastal communities often lack access to.

Policy Recommendation

Operation Phakisa highlights the pitfalls of over-reliance on job projections without parallel investments in capacity building. For large-scale blue economy initiatives, governments should enforce realistic workforce development targets at the design stage itself. This can also help avoid optimism bias and ensure that ambitious targets translate into sustainable employment. 

4. Fiji: Blue Bonds for Fisheries and Other Coastal Jobs 

In 2022, Fiji issued a US$50 million sovereign blue bond to support sustainable marine and fisheries projects. A key focus of the programme is sustainable fisheries management, which directly supports small-scale fishers. Initiatives under the programme help create formal and informal employment opportunities in coastal communities, particularly for women and youth. The bond also attracts private investment to the fisheries value chain, which helps in diversifying income sources beyond traditional donor grants.

Indonesia’s experience shows that tourism-led blue economy growth must go beyond creating jobs for local communities, enabling them to capture higher-value roles in emerging sectors. Training alone will prove insufficient if local communities are confined to low-value roles.

Policy Recommendation

This case demonstrates how sovereign finance institutions can be designed to target both resource conservation and coastal employment. Governments and the private sector exploring similar instruments must have clear safeguards in place to ensure that proceeds reach communities that are most dependent on marine livelihoods. In addition, partnerships with local cooperatives, women’s groups, and trade unions can help ensure that benefits are equitably distributed.

Conclusion

Under a sustainable ocean economy scenario, employment could expand by 51 million by 2050, reaching over 184 million jobs relative to 2019 levels. To realise this promise, countries must bridge the skills gap that threatens the exclusion of coastal communities from high-value opportunities. Durable and equitable blue economy growth depends on targeted training, inclusive financing, and realistic workforce development.

Abhishree Pandey is a Research Assistant with the Centre for Economy and Growth at the Observer Research Foundation.

• Developing and Emerging Economies
• India
• blue economy
• blue economy india
• blue economy workers
• coastal tourism
• ocean economy
• operation phakisa
• sagarmala project

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