Curated by Sameer Patil and Chaitanya Giri
Over 95 percent of global trade is seaborne, yet that has not stopped the oceans from becoming grand arenas of major power competition. Many actors are leveraging these deeply contested waters, including malevolent state actors with self-serving economic and security agendas that threaten to derail the global order. These self-serving geopolitical pursuits accentuate other concerning trends—insatiable greed for depleting ocean resources and outdated global governance rules.
For India, too, the maritime sector assumes deep strategic significance in its economic growth calculus. The country is poised to contribute about 18 percent of global growth over the next five years, with trade being the key contributor. It is also expected to become the third-largest global economy within the next three years, potentially becoming the largest by 2050. These milestones critically depend on the strength of the maritime sector, including the ability to shape global narratives, maintain resilient global supply chains, and secure sea lines of communication.
Given the criticality of the maritime sector, it is high time the international community renews and reassesses its role in safeguarding collective interests. This necessitates stewarding meaningful conversations spanning maritime-based commerce, supply chains, sustainability, and governance to ensure the longevity and health of our oceans, as well as new frameworks and regulations that reflect current realities and future challenges. Such conversations are crucial to fostering a more equitable and sustainable maritime future.
Sagarmanthan Edit 2024 curates a series of essays that set the context for discussing the current state and future of the maritime sector. It brings forth diverse voices and perspectives on key issues such as shipping, maritime connectivity and infrastructure, innovation, sustainability and uses of new technologies, prospects for global cooperation, and the blue economy.
