UK pledges nearly £75 million to marine conservation projects

The Government said the funding will go to supporting coastal ecosystems and growing sustainable economies.

The Government has announced a new tranche of funding to support marine ecosystems (Kirsty O’Connor/PA) (PA Archive)

Nearly £75 million will be invested in schemes to protect the world’s oceans, the Government has said.

Environment Secretary Therese Coffey made the announcement at the Our Ocean conference in Panama on Thursday, where heads of state, civil society and the private sector discuss ways to protect the marine environment.

Ms Coffey said £45 million will go towards a new “Blue Tech Superhighway” project, which aims to build collaboration between communities in Africa and Asia who would develop and share technologies to help fisheries become more climate resilient and less damaging to the oceans.