SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Nov. 28 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The blue economy of the Canary Islands generated 1,168 million euros in 2021, which represents 2.7% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the Canary Islands economy and with respect to employment, it represented 2.2% of the total employment in the economy. for that same year when reaching the figure of 17,915 employed people.
These data have been presented at the ‘We Count our Sea Conference: Measuring the Blue Economy of Macaronesia’, organized by the Canarian Institute of Statistics (Istac), which represents the last step of the MEDECOAZUL-MAC project co-financed by the European Union to through its INTERREG VA MAC program.
The Minister of Finance and Relations with the European Union, Matilde Asián, opened the conference by highlighting the relevance of data for decision-making by companies and public administrations, as well as in the field of research.
In this context, he congratulated the Institute for the development of this work in which the blue economy in the Canary Islands is defined and quantified and its impact on the gross domestic product (GDP) and employment of the islands, which, in his opinion, , is very relevant to evaluate sectors that can impact an increase in our GDP.
For his part, the director of ISTAC, Sergio Alonso, placed emphasis on the alliance that, de facto, has been created with the rest of the island regions of Macaronesia and that is materialized with the presentation of these results included in a new operation ISTAC statistics, included in the Statistical Plan of the Canary Islands.
Of all the economic activity generated around the sea in the Canary Islands, maritime transport (36.5%) and ports (30.2%) accounted for two-thirds of the GVA of the Canary Islands’ blue economy in 2021.
Next are shipbuilding and repair (11.4%), living marine resources (10.4%), and the other non-living marine resources sector (sea salt extraction and water desalination activities) ( 4.4%), includes a note from Istac.
This is followed by recreational activities at sea and on the coast (3.7%), and, finally, the sector that brings together the rest of the activities not previously covered (3.4%).
The sectoral structure of employment in the blue economy does not follow the same representation by sectors as the GVA.
Thus, although activities related to maritime transport (30.8%) and activities in ports (20.5%) continue to be at the forefront and account for more than 50% of employment in the blue economy of the Canary Islands, it is observed a lower intensity of employment compared to the rest of the activities.
NAVAL CONSTRUCTION AND REPAIR
On the other hand, because it is a much more intensive sector in the use of the labor factor, the living marine resources sector (17.6%) displaces shipbuilding and ship repair (12.6%) to fourth place. .
This is followed by recreational activities at sea and on the coast (7.9%), the group of other activities not previously covered (5.6%) and, finally, the other non-living marine resources sector (5. ,1%).
At the conference, the comparison between the blue economy of the Canary Islands and those of Madeira and the Azores was also presented, through joint work with the statistics offices of both archipelagos, DREM (General Directorate of Statistics of Madeira) and SREA (Regional Service of Azores Statistics), respectively.
From this work it is concluded that the importance of the blue economy in the Canary Islands is similar to that registered in Madeira and Portugal, with figures around 2% in the two magnitudes studied.
In the Azores, however, the weight in GVA doubles and almost triples in employment, given the importance of the fishing sector in this territory.
Unlike what happens in the Azores and Portugal, the greater weight in GVA than in employment for the Canary Islands and Madeira stands out, mainly due to the similarity of the economic structure of these archipelagos and the importance of the hospitality sector.
MACARONESIA
The conference was attended by representatives of the statistical offices of Madeira and Cape Verde and began, precisely, with the presentation of the new Cape Verde Sea Satellite Account Project, which was led by Paulo Barbosa (National Institute of Statistics of Cape Verde).
After a presentation on marine space planning for sustainable development of the blue economy in the Canary Islands, presented by Víctor Cordero (ECOAQUA University Institute of the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria), Otilia Gomes (Regional Directorate of Statistics of Madeira) presented the results of the Sea Satellite Account for Azores, Madeira and Portugal.
Domingo Lorenzo (ISTAC) presented the data on the blue economy in the Canary Islands in detail and then a debate was established that included methodological and cooperation proposals to measure the blue economy, and a reflection on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and environmental aspects associated with this type of analysis.
At the conclusion of the conference, Alberto González, deputy director of Statistical Modernization and European Funds of the Institute, highlighted the relevance of the collaboration between regions of Macaronesia, which has generated fruits such as the one now concluded with the Azores and Madeira.
For the immediate future, this collaboration takes shape in collaborative work with Cape Verde, which represents a new step to look at our regions rigorously to obtain relevant and comparable data that allows us to show a closer map of the reality of the archipelagos. and that, in turn, contributes to decision-making not only in the public and private sectors but also by citizens.
