The India-Norway Integrated Ocean Initiative is a bilateral cooperation framework, established to promote sustainable ocean management and the Blue Economy. Its foundation was laid with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on January 8, 2019, which created the India-Norway Ocean Dialogue and commissioned a Task Force on Blue Economy for Sustainable Development. The initiative was created to address the mutual interest and concern of both nations in managing ocean resources sustainably, moving toward integrated and ecosystem-based approaches for renewable and non-renewable natural resources.
The core mechanism of the Initiative is the implementation of Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), a process that ensures human activities at sea—such as energy, transportation, fisheries, and tourism—are conducted in an efficient, safe, and sustainable manner. The MSP component was agreed upon in March 2021 for a five-year period, with the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) implementing it in India through the National Centre for Coastal Research (NCCR). The initial phase of the MSP project identified Lakshadweep and Puducherry as pilot sites for developing the planning framework.
The Initiative connects directly to the broader India-Norway Collaboration Project on Sustainable Ocean Management, a five-year framework commencing in 2025 that seeks to enhance marine cooperation geographically and financially. Key provisions include joint projects and research, open data sharing, and capacity-building, with a focus on integrated ocean management and combating marine pollution. The Initiative has recently expanded, with Odisha leading the second phase of the MSP project, marking a significant expansion from the initial implementation in Puducherry and Lakshadweep. Norway contributes financially to the projects, including a 23 million NOK contribution in 2025 for integrated ocean management and anti-marine pollution efforts.