Headline: Summary for Decision-Makers – Strengthening Regional Ocean Governance for the High Seas: Opportunities and Challenges to Improve the Legal and Institutional Framework of the Southeast Atlantic and Southeast Pacific

This summary for decision-makers is based on the report ‘Strengthening Regional Ocean Governance for the High Seas: Opportunities and Challenges to Improve the Legal and Institutional Framework of the Southeast Atlantic and Southeast Pacific’. It is targeted towards policy and decision-makers as well as others working on issues of ocean governance, particularly in the Southeast Atlantic and Southeast Pacific regions The report was prepared as part of the Strengthening Regional Ocean Governance for the High Seas (‘STRONG High Seas’) project and builds on previous studies, particularly in relation to the Southeast Pacific. It is intended to provide a review of the relevant governance frameworks currently in place for the management of high seas biodiversity in these regions. The report uses the issues under discussion in the ongoing negotiations for a new legally binding BBNJ agreement under the United Nations, as well as selected Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 targets, as a lens through which to assess progress towards conservation and sustainable use.