From Concept to Practice: Financing Sustainable Blue Economy in Small Island Developing States, Lessons Learnt from the Seychelles Experience

Despite international enthusiasm, private-sector finance for sustainable development and the blue economy still makes up a very small percentage of global investment. Repurposed bonds and debt-for-nature swaps have gained support with policymakers, international organizations, and investors keen to align their investment with global goals and borrowing countries with large ocean domains seeking new sources of finance.

The paper explores how those trends have generated new financing opportunities for Small Island Developing States, a group of internationally recognized vulnerable countries, using Seychelles’ experience in blue economy development and financing through a blue bond and a debt swap. Based on interviews of local and international actors, the research shows both global and local drivers and challenges to successfully attracting and delivering on private finance.