Charlina Vitcheva, the European Commission’s directorate-general for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE), will deliver the keynote address and participate in a high-level panel at the Ocean Innovation Africa Summit in Durban.
Ocean Innovation Africa (OIA), in collaboration with eThekwini Municipality, will host the OIA Summit 2026 at the Durban International Convention Centre from March 23-25.
Vitcheva will speak on the summit theme during her keynote address and as a panellist on the Blue Finance for Resilience: shifting from aid dependency to sustainable local capital panel discussion.
Themed, Accelerating and Scaling Out Regenerative Blue Economy Action, the summit focuses on an audience of policymakers, practitioners, innovators, community leaders, investors, researchers and development partners.
Vitcheva is responsible for EU policy on maritime affairs and fisheries, working to promote a healthy ocean, sustainable fisheries, a sustainable blue economy and vibrant coastal communities across Europe and with international partners.
Her department is also responsible for developing, implementing and evaluating the common fisheries policy that helps to support Europe’s food security and leads the co-ordination of the European Ocean Pact. The pact brings together the EU’s ocean-related policies, including maritime security, international ocean governance and ocean observation.
“Ms Vitcheva’s participation will help bridge policy, investment priorities and practical pathways to scale regenerative ocean solutions across Africa,” said OIA co-founder, Alexis Grosskopf.
“She brings a depth of experience and expertise across all spheres of the OIA focus, from finance and innovation, to science and implementation.”
Vitcheva described the European Ocean Pact as a blueprint for the protection and sustainable use of the ocean.
“International cooperation is one of its fundamentals. Through strong international partnerships, including under Global Gateway Strategy and initiatives like BlueInvest Africa, we want to work with partners across Africa and beyond to promote sustainable ocean governance, support local value creation and unlock investment in ocean solutions, because protecting the ocean and building prosperity for coastal communities must go hand in hand.”
It will spotlight key pathways across Science-to-Business, Technology, Investment, and Policy for the uptake of African-developed solutions. It will focus on regenerative blue business models and nature-positive growth; blue finance pathways, from aid to local and blended capital, marine protection, economic expansion and community stability, pan-African innovation ecosystems.
“As the host city, we are honoured to welcome Charlina Vitcheva to the Summit,” said eThekwini Municipality mayor Cyril Xaba.
“For Durban, a coastal city deeply connected to the ocean economy, having a global leader responsible for maritime affairs and fisheries in Europe engage directly with African innovators, policymakers and investors helps open important opportunities for regeneration and growth.”
Last year’s event in Dar Es Salaam attracted 593 delegates from 59 countries including 28 African nations.
For more information or to register visit www.ocean-innovation.africa
