March 23, 2026
By Jun Karlo Laroza
When most discussions on national development unfold in the Philippines, they often center on land-based growth drivers such as agriculture and forestry, construction, manufacturing, infrastructure, and information technology and business process management or IT-BPM. But there is another frontier that the country often overlooks, one that holds enormous economic and strategic potential. I am referring to the sea and the promise of the Blue Economy (BE).
The World Bank defines BE as the “sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem.”1 With more than 36,000 kilometers of coastline, the Philippines is naturally positioned to develop a robust ocean economy.2
While discussions on BE focus on environmental sustainability and fisheries management, as the country protects its environment from potential threats like illegal fishing and environmental degradation, and industries are mostly dependent on fishing in terms of ocean economy but its potential as a strategic pillar for economic development in other pertinent areas is largely underexplored. Sectors like energy security and defense industrialization have enormous potential to improve the country’s economic growth, yet national priorities remain heavily focused on land-based growth and development.
Currently, the Philippines faces several pressures all at once: rising fuel prices,3 supply chain disruptions,4 increasing food costs,5 and growing maritime security concerns.6 The BE offers itself as a possible pathway to address these challenges while building a more resilient and diversified economy. For an archipelagic state like the Philippines, treating BE as a peripheral environmental objective rather than as a main strategic objective represents a missed opportunity.
The Rising Importance of the Ocean in the Philippine Economy
Recent data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) show that the country’s ocean-based industries have reached a valuation of ₱1.01 trillion in 2024, marking a 4.7% increase from the previous year and contributing 3.8% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).7
The ocean economy covers more than fishing or use of marine resources and maritime transport. This sector also includes coastal infrastructure, marine and maritime education, coastal tourism, and maritime logistics as areas that define what makes BE an essential part of nation building.8 While fishing alone accounts for nearly a 25% of the said value, the manufacturing of ocean-based products like shipbuilding and other related marine industries makes up about one-fifth of the total ocean economy (Desiderio, 2025).9
Growth in this sector has been notable in recent years, as ocean economy supports millions of jobs for Filipinos. Although employment dipped slightly to 2.39 million in 2024, this still represents around 4.9% of total national employment, supporting coastal livelihoods and linking regional economies to national markets (Philippine Statistics Authority, n.d.).10 Furthermore, in 2022, the ocean economy saw a remarkable 21.1% year-on-year expansion reflecting strong growth in coastal services and manufacturing ocean-based products.11
Power potential: energy generation of BE
According to a study by Navarro, Ortiz, & Camara in 2024, the Philippines is presently energy insecure. Based on their report, the country’s total primary energy supply (TPES) shares from indigenous sources and its energy self-sufficiency ratio have both declined recently. Despite being exposed to many energy sources, the Philippines remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels. As a matter of fact, in 2016, the Department of Energy (DOE) projected that approximately 76% of the country’s energy sources were derived from fossil fuels while the remaining proportion primarily consisted of renewable sources (Quitoras, Abundo, & Danao, 2018). Adopting new technologies to address this energy insecurity is deemed imperative as there is a pressing energy demand and as the world moves toward cleaner energy (Romero, 2023).
Fortunately, the Philippines is surrounded by powerful waves, tidal currents, and thermal gradients that could be harnessed for marine energy generation.12 Not to mention, the fact that wind energy can be generated through installation of offshore wind turbines floating on the sea or near coastal areas.13 This capability could supplement solar and geothermal sources, already being utilized in the country, diversifying the energy mix and reducing vulnerabilities to oil price shocks.
According to a study by Navarro, Ortiz, & Camara in 2024, the Philippines is presently energy insecure. Based on their report, the country’s total primary energy supply (TPES) shares from indigenous sources and its energy self-sufficiency ratio have both declined recently. Despite being exposed to many energy sources, the Philippines remains heavily dependent on fossil fuels. As a matter of fact, in 2016, the Department of Energy (DOE) projected that approximately 76% of the country’s energy sources were derived from fossil fuels while the remaining proportion primarily consisted of renewable sources (Quitoras, Abundo, & Danao, 2018). Adopting new technologies to address this energy insecurity is deemed imperative as there is a pressing energy demand and as the world moves toward cleaner energy (Romero, 2023).
Fortunately, the Philippines is surrounded by powerful waves, tidal currents, and thermal gradients that could be harnessed for marine energy generation.12 Not to mention, the fact that wind energy can be generated through installation of offshore wind turbines floating on the sea or near coastal areas.13 This capability could supplement solar and geothermal sources, already being utilized in the country, diversifying the energy mix and reducing vulnerabilities to oil price shocks.
Filipino maritime workers and a growing shipbuilding industry
Aside from energy potential, areas like seafaring and shipbuilding are seen as essential components of BE. Filipino seafarers have long been among the world’s most sought-after maritime workers because of their strong work ethics and English proficiency (Galanakis, 2023). According to the Review of Maritime Transport 2021 by UNCTAD, the Philippines ranked first among the five largest suppliers of seafarers by countries followed by Russian Federation and Indonesia.14
Filipino seafarers contribute to a significant share of the global maritime workforce that sends billions of pesos in remittances back in the Philippines, which in turn help the country’s economy (UNCTAD, 2021).15 Yet the BE is more than seafarers’ wages and coastal tourism, it includes industrial capacity and technological development within the maritime sector.
One of the Philippines’ most overlooked advantages is its shipbuilding capacity. According to a review by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 2022, the country ranked as the fourth largest shipbuilding nation in the world in terms of vessel completion measured in gross tonnage. This global ranking is the result of decades of commercial shipbuilding and repair activities in Philippine shipyards, particularly in bulk carriers and vessels tailored for international markets (OECD, 2022).
A strategy of power: local shipbuilding
On a more strategic viewpoint, shipbuilding carries national security implications. Developing stronger domestic shipbuilding capabilities could reduce reliance on imported naval vessels while supporting technology expansion and skilled employment (Gatdula, 2025). Rather than purchasing all naval vessels abroad, building ships domestically under a BE strategy would reduce acquisition costs, generate technology transfer and skilled jobs, and build a defense industrial base capable of long-term and continuous modernization.
As an archipelagic nation located along major maritime routes, the Philippines is not only endowed with surrounding waters but also occupies a strategic position in global trade. An estimated 21% of global trade or $3.4 trillion passed through the country and the South China Sea in 2016, highlighting the region’s importance to international commerce and trade (US Energy Information Administration, n.d.). The Philippines could take advantage of its strategic position as a hub for repairs and showcase its locally built ships as an alternative to higher-costs ships offered by foreign states.
Furthermore, commercial shipbuilding will help the industry develop its capability to build more and bigger ships, but it could also dangle with the idea of defense modernization in shipbuilding. To note, successful defense industry like those of South Korea and China rely on powerful shipbuilding capability that helps drive its economic growth and development. For instance, South Korea alone accounts to $31.8 billion in exports in 2025 (Korean JoongAng Daily, 2026). While the Philippines operates in a different context, it can use the South Korean model as a framework to begin its exploration on the idea of localizing shipbuilding for export.
This existing capacity positions the Philippines to move beyond reliance on foreign suppliers for naval vessels, patrol boats, commercial ships, and maritime infrastructure. Expanding domestic shipyards capabilities could support both commercial and defense requirements while generating skilled employment and technological development in the maritime sector.
Over time, this may contribute to a more sustainable defense industrial base capable of supporting long-term modernization. Enhancing Philippine maritime industries and shipbuilding capability could improve the country’s efforts in safeguarding its maritime domain, specifically in contested areas like the West Philippine Sea. Hence, a stronger BE contributes not only to economic development but also to national security, particularly in maritime security, which is essential for the Philippines as an archipelagic state. While the reality of maritime industries and shipbuilding is more complex than simply building ships or creating sea-based products, foreign samples suggest that their success came from years of mastery backed by government support and coherent policies.
Philippine Blue Economy National Framework
To fully realize the potential of BE in the country, the government should adopt a more integrated approach to maritime development by establishing a national BE framework orstrategy. House Bills nos. 115816 and 228417 and Senate Bill no. 184018 of the 20th Congress proposed the creation of a national BE framework that improves national coordination, direct investments toward sustainable activities, and ensure that economic gains from the marine resources and maritime domain are sustained while strategically safeguard the long-term growth of the country.
But a national framework that aligns the Maritime Industry Development Plan with the National Security Policy, the Philippine Labor and Employment Plan, and other strategic documents will allow the Philippines to transform its maritime advantages into long-term economic and strategic gains. That being said, strategic investment in marine energy pilot projects, shipbuilding industrial clusters, and maritime research institutions could accelerate technological development while improving the domestic industrial capacity.
Conclusion
BE is usually associated with environmental protection and sustainability. While these goals remain important, they risk framing the sea as a conservation policy overlooking the broader economic and strategic potential of maritime sector as a source of national strength.
For the Philippines, the BE should be treated not just as an environmental policy but as a national strategy. A strategy that supports employment, strengthens maritime industries, builds technological and industrial capabilities, and contributes to improving national defense. Reframing BE this way creates a pathway to address several current challenges like energy volatility and rising geopolitical tensions.
As a country that has long been described as a maritime nation, the Philippines has yet to fully capitalize on its maritime endowments that it can utilize around it. This might be because in practice, national development planning still largely focuses on land-based industries while the country’s maritime potential remains underutilized. What the country needs is the integration of maritime domain into a national strategy that bridges economic sustainability and development with defense modernization. This could redefine the country’s development trajectory.
The sea should not be seen as a fallback if land-based prioritization falls short, they should be co-equal in terms of importance. For an archipelagic nation like the Philippines, the sea or the ocean represents a strategic resource. One that requires government initiative, coherent policies, targeted investments, and sustained government support.
In strategic thinking, one must utilize what one has in abundance for its advantage. Similar to how some oil producing states use their oil to their strategic advantage, the Philippines can leverage its maritime resources and strategic location in global trade routes to promote shipbuilding skills and maritime products while at the same time diversify energy sources, generate skilled employment, and enhance national defense. With the right policies and investments or “a national framework”, BE could play far greater role in shaping the country’s long-term development trajectory.
Endnotes:
BE is usually associated with environmental protection and sustainability. While these goals remain important, they risk framing the sea as a conservation policy overlooking the broader economic and strategic potential of maritime sector as a source of national strength.
For the Philippines, the BE should be treated not just as an environmental policy but as a national strategy. A strategy that supports employment, strengthens maritime industries, builds technological and industrial capabilities, and contributes to improving national defense. Reframing BE this way creates a pathway to address several current challenges like energy volatility and rising geopolitical tensions.
As a country that has long been described as a maritime nation, the Philippines has yet to fully capitalize on its maritime endowments that it can utilize around it. This might be because in practice, national development planning still largely focuses on land-based industries while the country’s maritime potential remains underutilized. What the country needs is the integration of maritime domain into a national strategy that bridges economic sustainability and development with defense modernization. This could redefine the country’s development trajectory.
The sea should not be seen as a fallback if land-based prioritization falls short, they should be co-equal in terms of importance. For an archipelagic nation like the Philippines, the sea or the ocean represents a strategic resource. One that requires government initiative, coherent policies, targeted investments, and sustained government support.
In strategic thinking, one must utilize what one has in abundance for its advantage. Similar to how some oil producing states use their oil to their strategic advantage, the Philippines can leverage its maritime resources and strategic location in global trade routes to promote shipbuilding skills and maritime products while at the same time diversify energy sources, generate skilled employment, and enhance national defense. With the right policies and investments or “a national framework”, BE could play far greater role in shaping the country’s long-term development trajectory.
Endnotes:
World Bank Group. (n.d.). Problue. https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/problue
General Coastline of the Philippines is estimated to be at 36,289 KM as reported by OceanCentres. https://www.oceancentres.com/philippines#:~:text=overview,%2C%20future%2Dready%20maritime%20economy.
Based on Inquirer’s article, “Fuel shock and the peso pinch.” https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2197073/fuel-shock-and- the-peso-pinch
Based on Inquirer’s article, “Rights group warns oil shock could worsen inflation, cut jobs in PH.”
Dela Pena, K. Fuel shock and the peso pinch.
Maritime Security concerns listed in Coast Guard Maritime Digest in Deterrence By Denial: The Philippine Coast Guard’s Role in Mitigating Maritime Security Challenges by the Coast Guard Strategic Studies And International Affairs Center. https://cgssiac.coastguard.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/CGSSIAC-Coast-Guard-Maritime-Digest.pdf
Statistics cited from the report titled, “Ocean-based Industries Reach the Trillion Mark, Accounted for 3.8 Percent of GDP in 2024,” of the Philippine Statistics Authority. (2025).
Philippine Statistics Authority. Ocean-based Industries Reach the Trillion Mark, Accounted for 3.8 Percent of GDP in 2024.
OceanPixel shared key insights from the Marine Renewable Energy Stocktake and Options Report emphasized the vast potential of Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) like Tidal In-Stream Energy, Wave Energy, and Offshore Wind (OSW) in the Philippines.
Offshore wind energy refers to the production of electricity using large wind turbines placed in the ocean or other large bodies of water.
The five largest seafarer-supplying countries were the Philippines, the Russian Federation, Indonesia, China, and India, representing 44 per cent of the global workforce of the 1.9 million seafarers in the world.
In 2019, the Philippines earned approximately $30.1 billion from its overseas workers, equivalent to 9.3 percent of GDP and 7.3 percent of gross national income (GNI), with $6.5 billion contributed by seafarers. In 2020, total remittances declined by 0.8 percent to $29.9 billion, while remittances from seafarers decreased by 2.8 percent to $6.4 billion.
House Bill No. 1158 “An Act Establishing a Framework for Blue Economy, Promoting Stewardship and Sustainable Development of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems and Resources, Reorganizing and Renaming the National Coast Watch System as the National Maritime Monitoring System, and Providing Funds Therefor” is introduced by Rep. Javier Miguel L. Benitez in the Philippine 20th Congress.
House Bill No. 2284 “An Act Establishing a Framework for Blue Economy, Promoting Stewardship and Sustainable Development of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems and Resources, Reorganizing and Renaming the National Coast Watch System as the National Maritime Monitoring System, and Providing Funds Therefor” is introduced by Rep. Ma. Victoria Co-Pilar in the Philippine 20th Congress.
Senate Bill No. 1840 “An Act Establishing a Framework for Blue Economy, Promoting Stewardship and Sustainable Development of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems and Resources” is introduced by Sen. Francisco “Kiko” Pangilinan in the Philippine 20th Congress.
References:
Adan, M. & Laroza, J. (2023). Deterrence By Denial: The Philippine Coast Guard’s Role in Mitigating Maritime Security Challenges. Coast Guard Maritime Digest. Coast Guard Strategic Studies And International Affairs Center. https://cgssiac.coastguard.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/CGSSIAC-Coast-Guard-Maritime-Digest.pdf
Baclig, C. (2026). Rights group warns oil shock could worsen inflation, cut jobs in PH. Inquirer.net. https://globalnation.inquirer.net/314594/rights-group-warns-oil-shock-could-worsen-inflation-cut-jobs-in-ph
Dela Pena, K. (2026). Fuel shock and the peso pinch. Inquirer.net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2197073/fuel-shock-and-the-peso-pinch
Desiderio, L. (2025). Philippines ocean economy hits P1 trillion in 2024. The Philippine Star. https://www.philstar.com/business/2025/09/21/2474252/philippines-ocean-economy-hits-p1-trillion-2024
Galanakis, K. (2023). The Filipino market supply of seafarers and cadets and their contribution to the global merchant fleet. Safety4Sea.
https://safety4sea.com/the-filipino-market-supply-of-seafarers-and-cadets-and-their-contribution-to-the-global-merchant-fleet
Gatdula, J. (2025). Enhancing the Philippines’ Shipbuilding and Port Capabilities for Economic and National Security. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). https://www.csis.org/blogs/new-perspectives-asia/enhancing-philippines-shipbuilding-and-port-capabilities-economic-
Gatdula, J. (2025). Enhancing the Philippines’ Shipbuilding and Port Capabilities for Economic and National Security. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). https://www.csis.org/blogs/new-perspectives-asia/enhancing-philippines-shipbuilding-and-port-capabilities-economic-
Korean JoongAng Daily. (2026). Gov’t to provide $221.4 million to support projects aimed at developing advanced shipbuilding technologies. https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2026-02-24/business/industry/Govt-to-provide-2214-million-to-support-projects-aimed-at-developing-advanced-shipbuilding-technologies/2530631
Navarro, A., Ortiz, M.K., & Camara, J. (2024). Evaluating energy security in the Philippines: An indicators-based assessment. Philippine Institute for Development Studies. https://pidswebs.pids.gov.ph/CDN/document/pidspn2401.pdf
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2025). Peer Review of the Philippines’ Shipbuilding Industry. Reviews of Shipbuilding Economies. https://www.oecd.org/en/publications/peer-review-of-the-philippines-shipbuilding-industry_d1b077e1-en/full-report/global-perspective-maritime-activities-in-the-philippines
Philippine Statistics Authority. Ocean-based Industries Reach the Trillion Mark, Accounted for 3.8 Percent of GDP in 2024. https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/ocean-economy/node/1684080739
Quitoras, M., Abundo, M., & Danao, L. (2018). A techno-economic assessment of wave energy resources in the Philippines. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol. 88, Pgs 68-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2018.02.016.
Romero, P. (2023). Philippines must adapt new tech for energy security. PhilStar Global. https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2023/04/10/2257786/philippines-must-adapt-new-tech-energy-security
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. (2021). Review of Maritime Transport 2021.
United States Energy Information Administration. (n.d.). Overview of the Global Trade. https://www.eia.gov/international/content/analysis/regions_of_interest/South_China_Sea/
Jun Karlo Laroza
Jun Karlo Laroza is a Special Lecturer at the College of International Relations, Lyceum of the Philippines University–Manila. He holds a Master of Arts in Foreign Service and currently serves in the Philippine government. He previously worked at the Department of National Defense and the Philippine Coast Guard, contributing to his expertise in international relations and national security.
Jun Karlo Laroza is a Special Lecturer at the College of International Relations, Lyceum of the Philippines University–Manila. He holds a Master of Arts in Foreign Service and currently serves in the Philippine government. He previously worked at the Department of National Defense and the Philippine Coast Guard, contributing to his expertise in international relations and national security.
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