World oceans day is an International day that takes place annually on the 8th of June every year.

The concept of this was originally proposed in the year 1992 by Canada’s International Centre for Ocean development and the Ocean Institute Of Canada at the UN earth summit conference on environment and development.

However, world oceans day was officially recognized by the United Nations in the year 2008.

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The world oceans day is observed by all UN members states which seek to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) globally and encourages public interest in the management of the ocean and its resources.

This initiative is stipulated in goal 6 and goal 14 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals which was drafted in September 2015, building on the principle of “leaving no one behind”, the new Agenda emphasizes a holistic approach to achieving sustainable development for all.

The SDGs also explicitly include disability and persons with disabilities. Disability is referenced in multiple parts of the SDGs, specifically in the parts related to education, growth and employment, inequality, accessibility of human settlements, as well as data collection and the monitoring of the SDGs.

Although the word “disability” is not cited directly in all goals, the goals are indeed relevant to ensure the inclusion and development of persons with disabilities.

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The newly implemented 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development holds a deep promise for persons with disabilities everywhere.

Meanwhile, the official Instagram page of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and cultural organization(UNESCO) which is a special agency of the United Nations posted an image on their page to celebrate this World Oceans Day today.

By Fuseina Issaka | @fussyy