Just a good start to ocean governance
Through multi-convention collaboration and by providing public goods and supporting developing countries, China can strengthen its voice in global environmental governance
The Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction, also known as the BBNJ Agreement, adopted in June 2023, officially entered into force on Jan 17. This marks a pivotal shift in global ocean governance from treaty negotiation to implementation, institution-building and measurable delivery. This year also marks the 30th anniversary of China’s accession to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Drawing on its experience in global climate and biodiversity governance, China gains an opportunity to advance science-based, inclusive and equitable governance of the global commons.
China’s evolution through multiple recent environmental processes illustrates a clear trajectory from participation to deeper engagement, from compliance with agreed rules to active contribution to institutional design and implementation. The key to enhancing institutional influence is no longer only negotiation capacity, but also the ability to provide public goods: scientific knowledge, financing, capacity building, data infrastructure and practical implementation pathways.
Under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, China has gradually evolved from being an important participant to becoming a key contributor to global climate governance. China announced its carbon peaking and neutrality goals in 2020, established the “1+N” policy framework to translate these commitments into domestic institutional arrangements, and updated its 2035 Nationally Determined Contributions in 2025 to beef up its climate response. In the international cooperation sector, since President Xi Jinping announced the establishment of the China South-South Climate Cooperation Fund with 20 billion yuan ($2.94 billion) in 2015, China has signed 55 cooperation agreements with 43 developing countries, implemented over 300 capacity-building projects by the end of October 2025, and mobilized more than 177 billion yuan since 2016, according to data in a white paper titled “Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality China’s Plans and Solutions” released by China’s State Council Information Office. These efforts have helped bridge North-South divides and build consensus.
Under the Convention on Biological Diversity, China’s presidency of the 15th Conference of the Parties facilitated the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. China took the lead in investing 1.5 billion yuan to establish the Kunming Biodiversity Fund, moving from political commitment to operational delivery, which now supports 31 projects across 45 developing countries. Since 2019, China has been the largest donor to the CBD’s voluntary core budget and the largest developing-country contributor to the Global Environment Facility. These actions demonstrate that institutional influence rests on deliverable public goods, predictable finance and credible cooperation mechanisms — not just diplomatic mediation.
Through South-South cooperation initiatives, China has engaged in pragmatic collaboration with countries such as Cambodia, Mauritius, Indonesia and Thailand in fields such as mangrove rehabilitation and coral reef cultivation while organizing training programs. These endeavors underscore that China’s contributions to global marine biodiversity have evolved from financial aid to encompass skills sharing and institutionalized cooperation, thereby offering a replicable “Chinese model” for developing countries.
In this context, implementing the BBNJ Agreement provides a new lens for understanding the strategic value of proactive institutional engagement. With 145 signatories of which 92 have become official parties at present, the BBNJ Agreement applies to areas beyond national jurisdiction — covering two-thirds of the ocean and nearly half the planet’s surface. It addresses governance gaps in marine genetic resources, area-based management tools, environmental effect assessment, capacity-building and technology transfer. Science is central to its implementation, requiring long-term observation, open data systems, transparent assessments and stronger developing-country participation. The upcoming BBNJ Secretariat will thus be more than an administrative body and will serve as an operational hub for meetings, information exchange, capacity-building and science-policy coordination.
As a full participant in BBNJ negotiations and an early signatory and ratifying state, China has formally submitted its bid to host the BBNJ Secretariat in Xiamen, East China’s Fujian province. This bid is not merely a quest for institutional presence but a concrete proposal to support effective treaty implementation. It aims to respond to the need for broader regional representation, stronger developing-country engagement and more balanced access to ocean governance resources.
Strategically, this move offers multiple strategic benefits: It would optimize the geographical distribution of global ocean governance institutions and enhance representation and inclusiveness; it would demonstrate China’s responsibility as a major developing country by signaling willingness to contribute not only to negotiation but also to implementation, institutional operation and long-term capacity-building, fostering broad participation and mutual trust; and, crucially, it would help narrow the implementation gap by addressing the uneven capacities of countries to engage in environmental effect assessment, area-based planning and benefit-sharing — ensuring that the BBNJ Agreement becomes a genuinely universal and equitable mechanism rather than one reserved for advanced marine nations.
The BBNJ Agreement’s entry into force is the beginning of a long implementation journey. For China, active engagement is not solely about its willingness to host a secretariat; it is about contributing to a fairer, more science-based, and more effective global ocean governance system.
Chen Xinying is a senior engineer at the Secretariat of the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED). Cao Ling is a distinguished professor at Xiamen University and the assistant director of Fujian Ocean Innovation Center. Dai Minhan is a council member of the CCICED, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a chair professor at Xiamen University.
The authors contributed this article to China Watch, a think tank powered by China Daily. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
Contact the editor at editor@chinawatch.cn.
