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Capacity-Building and Trust Funds
The Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS) of the Office of Legal Affairs (OLA) has been providing an ongoing programme of assistance to States and intergovernmental organizations in the field of oceans and the law of the sea since the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982.
The programme provides assistance to States in the uniform and consistent application of the Convention and related Agreements,
as well as ocean affairs more broadly. Assistance is developed on a needs-basis, working closely with beneficiaries and donors,
as well as relevant intergovernmental organizations and development partners. Priority is given to developing States.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals are mainstreamed into the programme,
as are other contemporary and emerging topics of relevance to the beneficiaries. Such topics may include: ocean governance,
the science-policy interface, oceans and climate change, sustainable ocean-based economies (blue economy), and marine protected areas, and etc.
DOALOS also administers a number of Trust Funds established by the General Assembly which aim to assist States, particularly developing States,
in the implementation of the Convention and to participate in ocean-related work of the General Assembly.
Technical Cooperation
Demand-driven and needs-based projects developed and implemented in partnership with the beneficiaries and donors
Trust Funds
A number of Trust Funds to assist developing States in the implementation of the Convention and in participating in the ocean-related work of the General Assembly
Fellowships
Advisory Services
Demand-driven and customized advice on issues related to the ratification of the Convention and related Agreements, their uniform and consistent application and effective implementation, as well as in ocean affairs more generally
Studies and Guidelines
Topical studies and guidelines on the application of provisions of the Convention as well as in oceans affairs more generally
Enhancing Ocean Capacity a guide to the Division’s Capacity-building Programme
(Available in English , French and Spanish
Reference Collection and Databases
Specialized ocean and law of the sea reference collection and databases containing national legislation and delimitation treaties
Resources
Technical cooperation project outputs
National Ocean Governance Studies
Building legal and institutional frameworks for the sustainable management of ocean sectors
- DOALOS/Norad Programmes of Assistance (14 States)
- Oceans Economy and Trade Strategies Project (3 States)
National Ocean Economy and Trade Strategies
Assisting developing States to realize the full potential of ocean economic sectors
- Oceans Economy and Trade Strategies Project (3 States)
- Pandemic's effects on the blue economy of beneficiary States Project Report
Building capacity for sustainable fisheries through the UN Fish Stocks Agreement
Policy Briefs on the Fish Stocks Agreement (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Spanish)
UN Fish Stocks Agreement Toolkit
UN Fish Stocks Agreement - A Guide for Raising Awareness, Furthering Understanding and Strengthening Implementation of its Provisions
Acuerdo de las Naciones Unidas sobre las Poblaciones de Peces: Guía para Sensibilizar, Ayudar a Comprender y Reforzar la Aplicación de sus Disposiciones, Mayo 2025
Accord des Nations Unies sur les stocks de poissons: Guide pour faire connaître et mieux comprendre ses dispositions et renforcer leur mise en œuvre
Latest developments
Trainings and Briefings
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ONLINE Ocean Governance Capacity Building Training Program for the Asian region (10-28 February 2025)
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Regional Workshop on the BBNJ Agreement for States of the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Africa in Rabat, Morocco (16-19 December 2024) EN/FR
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Regional Workshop on the Law of the Sea and Ocean Governance for the South American region, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil (9-13 December 2024) EN/ES
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Training Program on Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (6-24 October 2024)
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Workshop on the Law of the Sea and Ocean Governance for the Francophone Countries in the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) region, Nosy Be, Madagascar (23-27 September 2024) EN/FR
see more
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Workshop on Ocean Governance and BBNJ Agreement for the Pacific Region in Suva, Fiji (3-11 July 2024)
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DOALOS participates in the SIOFA 11th Meeting of the Parties (MOP) and organizes a side event "The United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement, its current relevance for RFMO/As and “BBNJ” Agreement Overview (1 - 5 July 2024)
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DOALOS conducts online briefings on marine genetic resources, including the fair and equitable sharing of benefits, under the BBNJ Agreement , in EN/FR/SP (6-12 March 2024)
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DOALOS participates in the 12th SPRFMO Annual Meeting and holds side event "UNFSA and its current relevance for RFMO/As and Overview of the BBNJ Agreement"
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ONLINE - Ocean Governance Capacity Building Training Program for Latin America and the Caribbean region (6-23 May 2024) Apply by 11 February 2024
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EN LINEA - Programa de Fortalecimiento de las Capacidades para la Gobernanza de los Océanos para la Región de América Latina y el Caribe (6-23 de mayo de 2024) Solicitar antes 11 de febrero de 2024
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Workshop for the ASEAN Region - Bali, Indonesia (12-15 Dec 2023) Info here
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PARIS UNESCO HQ: International Symposium of the United Nations Regular Process on strengthening the ocean science-policy interface -- Paris, France (12-13 Dec 2023) Info here
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Atelier régional Gulf de Guineé | Regional Workshop Gulf of Guinea -- Yaoundé, Cameroun (10-13 Oct 2023) Infos ici
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EN LIGNE: Briefing sur l’Accord BBNJ en français (7 déc 2023, 8h00 - 9h00 New York (UTC-5))
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NEW YORK UN HQ: DOALOS and UNITAR Training for Delegates and Young Diplomats in New York on Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (30 Oct 2023)
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ERITREA: DOALOS delivers in-country Training Programme in Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea for Eritrea
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Launch of the Project of Assistance to Strengthen Participation in and Implementation of the United Nations Fish Stocks Agreement (UNFSA)
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A brief video outlining the assistance provided by the DOALOS/Norad Programmes of Assistance
DOALOS Project Consultancies
Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply
- OPEN - Research Support Consultant - Ocean Governance Studies - Saint Lucia (12 June 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Consultant - Ocean Governance Studies - Saint Lucia (16 May 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Graphic Designer (Desktop Publishing) Consultant (15 May 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Consultor de Asistencia Técnica, Experto en Pesca/Technical Assistance Consultant, Fisheries - Uruguay (12 May 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Research Support Consultant - Ocean Governance Studies - Federal Republic of Somalia (30 April 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Consultant - Ocean Governance Studies - Federal Republic of Somalia (30 April 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Rédacteur en langue française pour l'étude sur le gouvernance des océans au Madagascar (5 May 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Consultor Experto Legal para Guatemala en Reducción de Emisiones de Gases de Efecto Invernadero y Anexo VI del Convenio MARPOL | Legal Expert Consultant for Guatemala on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction and MARPOL Annex VI (13 April deadline)
- CLOSED - BBNJ Case study Consultant (EU Funded BBNJ Project) (16 April 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Copy-Editor Ocean Governance Studies (5 March 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Capacity Needs and Priority Assessment Consultant (African States on the coasts of the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and landlocked States in the wider region) (25 February 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Capacity Needs and Priority Assessment Consultant (Latin American States) (18 February 2025 deadline)
- CLOSED - Technical Assistance Consultant/ Fisheries Expert - Tonga (27 Dec 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Communications Consultant (social media content creator) (8 November 2024 deadline)
see more
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CLOSED- Correcteur/Correctrice d’épreuves de langue française UNFSA POA (18 October 2024 deadline)
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CLOSED - Consultor para la Edición de la Guía de Implementación en Lenguaje Español UNFSA POA (18 October 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Technical Assistance Consultant/Fisheries Expert Viet Nam (Legal) (29 August 2024 deadline)
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CLOSED - Technical Assistance Consultant/Fisheries Expert Viet Nam (Lead Fisheries Consultant) (29 August 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Technical Assistance Consultant/Fisheries Expert Ecuador, Spanish Version (20 August 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Technical Assistance Consultant/Fisheries Expert (Viet Nam) (1 August 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Graphic Designer UNFSA POA consultancy (1 August 2024 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Ocean Governance Expert - Technical Assistance (Cameroon) (14 June 2024 deadline), EN
- CLOSED - Expert en gouvernance des océans - Assistance Technique (Cameroun) (14 juin 2024 date limite), FR
- CLOSED - Ocean Governance Expert - Technical Assistance (Trinidad and Tobago) (29 May 2024 deadline), EN
- CLOSED - Project Evaluation (08 May 2024 deadline), EN
- CLOSED - Animation Production Consultant (10 April 2024 extended deadline)
- CLOSED - Capacity-building Needs and Priorities Assessment Toolkit Development Expert (10 April 2024 extended deadline)
- CLOSED - Technical Assistance Consultant/Fisheries Expert (Maldives) (12 April 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - BBNJ Communications Consultant (29 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Implementation Guide Translator EN/SP (25 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Implementation Guide Translator EN/FR (25 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Needs and Priority Assessment Consultant (Caribbean SIDS) (21 March 2024 extended deadline)
- CLOSED - Needs and Priority Assessment Consultant (Anglophone Atlantic Africa) (14 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Needs and Priority Assessment Consultant (Francophone Atlantic Africa) (14 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Video Producer/Editor (8 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Implementation Guide Copy Editor (7 March 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Needs and Priority Assessment Consultant (West African States) (22 February 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Programme Coordinator BBNJ Project (15 February 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Graphic Designer - Consultant Level B (9 February 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Policy Briefs Translator - Russian consultancy (26 January 2024 deadline)
- CLOSED - Policy Briefs Translator - Chinese consultancy (26 January 2024 deadline)
- FILLED - Programme Coordinator UNFSA POA (7 February 2024 deadline)
- FILLED - Ocean Governance Study Mozambique - Consultant Level A (22 January 2024 deadline)
- FILLED - Ocean Governance Study Mozambique - Consultant Level B (22 January 2024 deadline)
- FILLED - Editor(a) en idioma español para los Estudios de Gobernanza Oceánica de Guatemala (fecha límite para aplicar: 22 de enero de 2024)
- FILLED - Études sur la gouvernance des océans Consultant B (Madagascar - Français) (date limite: 1er décembre 2023)
- FILLED - Études sur la gouvernance des océans Consultant A (Madagascar - Français) (date limite: 1er décembre 2023)
- FILLED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant 2 (Tanzania) (10 November 2023 deadline)
- FILLED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant 1 (Tanzania) (10 November 2023 deadline)
- CLOSED - Policy Briefs Translator - Arabic consultancy
(6 Oct 2023 deadline) - FILLED - Communication Consultant consultancy (26 May 2023 deadline)
- FILLED- Programme Coordinator consultancy
(12 Nov 2022 deadline) - FILLED - Implementation Guide Consultant consultancy
(19 Nov 2022 deadline) - FILLED - Editor(a) en idioma español para los Estudios de Gobernanza Oceánica de México y Panamá (fecha límite para aplicar: 22 de septiembre de 2023)
- FILLED - MGR Legal Expert Consultant for Panama (9 August 2023 deadline)
- FILLED - Blue Economy Legal Expert Consultant for Antigua and Barbuda (9 August 2023 deadline)
- FILLED - Editor en idioma español para el estudio de gobernanza oceánica de Panamá
- FILLED - English/French Translator for Cameroon
- FILLED - Copy-Editor Consultancy/Ocean Governance Studies (1 August 2023 deadline)
- FILLED - Copy-Editor Consultancy/Ocean Governance Studies (28 June 2023 deadline)
- FILLED - Programme coordinator consultant
- FILLED - Graphic designer (desktop publishing) Consultant
- ENDED - Rédacteur en langue française pour l’étude sur la gouvernance des océans - Togo
- ENDED - Project Strategic Review Consultant
- ENDED - Communications Consultant
- ENDED - Programme Coordinator Consultant (12 Nov 2022 deadline)
- ENDED - Implementation Guide Consultant Consultant (19 Nov 2022 deadline)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Mexico)
- ENDED- Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Mexico)
- ENDED - Copy-Editor Consultancy/Ocean Governance Studies
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant 2 (Indonesia)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant 1 (Indonesia)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Togo)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Togo)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Trinidad and Tobago)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Trinidad and Tobago)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Cameroon)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Cameroon)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Panama)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Panama)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Viet Nam)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Viet Nam)
- ENDED- Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Antigua and Barbuda)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Antigua and Barbuda)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Consultant (Ghana)
- ENDED - Ocean Governance Study Research Support Consultant (Ghana)