Coastal tourism, renewable energies, aquaculture, marine biotechnology, coastal tourism and seabed mining are the key sectors of the new agenda established by the European Commission and the ministers responsible for maritime policy of the European Union, due to their importance in the creation and sustainable development of employment.

This agreement, signed in Limassol (Cyprus), aims to consolidate the commitment of EU countries to move towards a community directive that ensures the appropriate conditions that allow the development of these sectors. The so-called “blue economy” will thus promote employment, through research, training and international cooperation in monitoring and management of the marine environment. According to a report, which calculates an added value for the European blue economy of 500,000 million euros and that it will reach 600,000 million in 2020, around 5.4 million jobs have been created, a figure that could reach seven million by 2020 through the agreement of a common strategy and that would be added to the 100,000 new jobs in cruise tourism and the expected growth between 2 and 2020. 3% in coastal tourism. On the other hand, the use of sea routes for Europe’s foreign trade stands at 75% and is already 37% of intra-European trade.

On the other hand, a growth in marine energy capacity is expected, which would mean the development of the commercialization of wave and tidal energy, as well as the boost in the turnover of marine mineral extraction to 5,000 million euros by 2020. These figures raise the maritime sector as a key scenario for the recovery of the economy at the European level.