Technical Guidance on Ocean Accounting
The Technical Guidance provides a comprehensive, modular methodology for compiling ocean accounts -- structured frameworks that integrate environmental, economic, and social data about marine and coastal systems. It is designed for a diverse readership, from national statisticians and ecosystem analysts to policy executives and finance practitioners. Each circular is self-contained, so you can read them in any order that suits your needs.
Start with Circular 0.1: General Introduction for the conceptual framework, then use Circular 0.5: Navigating the Technical Guidance to find a reading pathway matched to your role and interests.
The Technical Guidance is under active development. Most circulars are in Draft status, meaning content is substantially written and available for reading, but still under review by the GOAP Technical Expert Panel. Draft circulars represent the current best guidance and are updated regularly. Planned circulars have defined scope but content is not yet available.
Circular Sections
Section 0: Concepts, Definitions and Front Matter
Foundation materials including conceptual framework, standards overview, and quality assurance principles.
| ID | Title | Badge | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | General Introduction to Ocean Accounts | Core | Completed |
| 0.2 | Overview of Relevant Statistical Standards | Core | Draft |
| 0.3 | General Acknowledgements | Core | Draft |
| 0.4 | Structure and Focus of the Technical Guidance | Core | Draft |
| 0.5 | Navigating the Technical Guidance | Core | Completed |
| 0.6 | Glossary of Key Terms | Core | Draft |
| 0.7 | Quality Assurance Principles | Applied | Draft |
| 0.8 | Implementation Readiness Assessment | Applied | Draft |
Section 1: Using Ocean Accounts in Decision-Making
How ocean accounts inform policy, planning, finance, and management decisions.
| ID | Title | Badge | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | OA and national budget processes | Applied | Draft |
| 1.2 | OA and marine spatial planning | Applied | Draft |
| 1.3 | OA and marine spatial management (including MPAs) | Applied | Draft |
| 1.4 | OA and Sustainable Ocean Planning | Applied | Draft |
| 1.5 | OA and fisheries management | Applied | Draft |
| 1.6 | OA and environmental impact assessment | Applied | Draft |
| 1.7 | OA and multilateral development finance | Applied | Draft |
| 1.8 | OA and project-level finance | Applied | Draft |
| 1.9 | Safe usage of monetary valuation | Core | Draft |
| 1.10 | OA and National Planning Integration | Applied | Draft |
Section 2: Compiling Indicators from Ocean Accounts
Guidance on deriving indicators for policy monitoring and reporting.
| ID | Title | Badge | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.1 | Aggregate biophysical indicators | Applied | Draft |
| 2.2 | Macro-economic dependencies | Applied | Draft |
| 2.3 | Social and livelihood dependencies | Applied | Draft |
| 2.4 | Ecosystem goods and services | Applied | Draft |
| 2.5 | Ocean economy structure | Applied | Draft |
| 2.6 | Ocean-related investment | Applied | Draft |
| 2.7 | Pollution and flows to environment | Applied | Draft |
| 2.8 | Climate change indicators | Applied | Draft |
| 2.9 | Disaster risk indicators | Applied | Draft |
| 2.10 | MEA indicators | Applied | Draft |
| 2.11 | Resource efficiency indicators | Applied | Draft |
Section 3: Compiling Ocean Accounts from Relevant Data
Core methodology for building accounts tables.
| ID | Title | Badge | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | Asset accounts | Applied | Draft |
| 3.2 | Flows from environment to economy | Applied | Draft |
| 3.3 | Economic activity | Applied | Draft |
| 3.4 | Flows from economy to environment | Applied | Draft |
| 3.5 | Social accounts | Emerging | Draft |
| 3.6 | Traditional Knowledge | Emerging | Draft |
| 3.7 | Governance accounts | Emerging | Draft |
| 3.8 | Combined presentations | Applied | Draft |
| 3.9 | Aquaculture accounts | Applied | Draft |
| 3.10 | Offshore energy accounts | Applied | Draft |
| 3.11 | Sub-National Ocean Accounts | Emerging | Draft |
Section 4: Compiling and Producing Data
Data collection, processing, and quality assurance methods.
| ID | Title | Badge | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4.1 | Remote sensing and geospatial data | Applied | Draft |
| 4.2 | Survey methods | Applied | Draft |
| 4.3 | Administrative data sources | Applied | Draft |
| 4.4 | Citizen science | Emerging | Draft |
| 4.5 | Research data integration | Applied | Draft |
| 4.6 | Data harmonisation | Applied | Draft |
| 4.7 | National Data Coordination Architectures | Applied | Draft |
Section 5: Geographic and Thematic Case Studies
Real-world implementation examples from partner countries. Case studies are forthcoming and will be developed in collaboration with country teams.
| ID | Title | Focus | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.1 | Indonesia | MSM, strategic planning, multilateral finance | Planned |
| 5.2 | Maldives | MSP, debt-for-nature, EIA | Planned |
| 5.3 | Thailand/Vietnam | Sustainable tourism | Planned |
| 5.4 | Fiji/Vanuatu | National budget processes | Planned |
| 5.5 | India | Blue economy planning | Planned |
| 5.6 | Australia (Geographe) | Marine park benefits | Planned |
| 5.7 | Australia (Blue carbon) | Domestic carbon markets | Planned |
| 5.8 | United States | Blue economy, natural capital | Planned |
| 5.9 | Belize | Sustainable finance, IOM | Planned |
Section 6: Thematic Methodologies
Deep-dive methodologies for specific ecosystem types and sectors.
| ID | Title | Badge | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.1 | Coral reef ecosystem accounting | Applied | Draft |
| 6.2 | Mangrove and coastal wetland | Applied | Draft |
| 6.3 | Seagrass ecosystem | Applied | Draft |
| 6.4 | Kelp forest and temperate reef | Emerging | Draft |
| 6.5 | Pelagic and open ocean | Emerging | Draft |
| 6.6 | Deep sea and ABNJ | Emerging | Draft |
| 6.7 | Fisheries/stock assessment | Applied | Draft |
| 6.8 | Aquaculture thematic | Applied | Draft |
| 6.9 | Offshore energy thematic | Emerging | Draft |
| 6.10 | Maritime transport and ports | Applied | Draft |
| 6.11 | Coastal infrastructure | Applied | Draft |
| 6.12 | Marine litter and plastics | Applied | Draft |
| 6.13 | Freshwater-Marine Interaction Accounting | Emerging | Draft |
Stability Classification
Circulars are classified by their stability:
| Badge | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Core | Based on adopted international standards (2025 SNA, SEEA CF, SEEA EA) |
| Applied | Interprets standards for ocean context; stable but may evolve |
| Emerging | Addresses topics where standards are still developing |
| Pilot | Experimental methods being tested |
See Circular 0.5: Navigating the Technical Guidance for full details on versioning and audience pathways.
About the Technical Guidance
The Technical Guidance on Ocean Accounting is developed by the Global Ocean Accounts Partnership (GOAP) to support national and subnational implementation of ocean accounts. Circulars are published on a monthly cadence following review by the GOAP Technical Expert Panel.
For more information about GOAP, visit the Global Ocean Accounts Partnership.