Blue Notebook of Carlos Kpodiefin (Chronicles of an Immersion into the African Blue Economy): Blue Suits Me So Well, or How I Let Myself Be Swept Away by the Blue Economy…

When I was a child, I was fascinated by the color red. Then, as I grew older, two more colors were added: black and white. As I liked to describe myself to anyone who would listen, I moved from one extreme to the other, from yin to yang, with a red passion running through it all…

But somewhere, lurking in the shadows, another color was watching me and had surely sworn to claim me. It all began with the fascination I have always had for the sea. In middle school, when I discovered poetry, a friend and I would spend our free time by the water, dedicating poems to it that we dreamed of recording with the sound of waves in the background… (thinking about it now, I should revive that project).

But everything truly took off later, when I began working on the Maritimafrica project with Pascaline ODOUBOUROU, initially as a development strategy consultant. For me, it was simply another project to launch before moving on to something else. But that was underestimating this sector and its spells. As my dear Mahmoud NEDJAI says—I quote from memory: “The maritime sector is very jealous: once you get into it, you never leave.”

While working on the launch and development of Maritimafrica, I was, without realizing it, becoming more and more blue. When the project was launched and it became necessary to find a journalist to bring it to life and implement the strategies I had designed, I once again let myself be trapped by this color that had decided to take me on board at all costs. And, without thinking too much, I took the plunge. Since then, every time I try to return to shore, there is always an encounter, a discovery that pushes me to dive even deeper into its bluish waters.

From Cotonou to Dakar, passing through Lomé, Kinshasa, Abidjan, Addis Ababa, Accra, Douala, Algiers, Banjul, Lagos, Abuja… blue, like a patient courtesan, set out to seduce me through forums, conferences, and symposiums, until it had me completely. It even seems to have enlisted accomplices to make me sail farther and farther, forcing me to discover its treasures and everything it promises for Africa.

Beyond Pascaline ODOUBOUROU, who sparked this desire for blue, there was Yvonne MOYU’ TAGNE who, through her journey, the information and contacts she shared, constantly pushed me to explore deeper into this world. Among the other “agents of blue” is Ms. Agnes EBO’O who, through the PASSMAR project, allowed me to experience extraordinary encounters in Kinshasa. My time in Kinshasa in 2022 was a decisive stop in consolidating this passion.

There are also those enthusiasts who, in the course of a discussion or collaboration, injected me with the virus: Dr. Damien AHOUANDOKOUN, whose relentless drive to promote blue sectors in Benin and across Africa fascinates me; and Fulgence ZINSOU, who—something rare in our part of the world—does not just dream big but puts all his energy into setting sail toward the highest goals.

In Algiers, during my first trip to North Africa for the Algiers Maritime Forum organized by Mahmoud NEDJAI, I discovered passionate professionals who welcomed me as a member of the “blue clan.” For the first time, I felt a real sense of belonging to a maritime community as a journalist.

In my exploration of the sector’s deep waters, I discovered rare gems such as Professor Martin NDENDE, Minister Kokou Edem TENGUE, Colonel Andre CISEAU, Dr. Paul ADALIKWU, Colonel Cyrille Serge ATONFACK GUEMO, and more recently, former Malagasy minister Paubert Tsimanaoraty MAHATANTE—men driven by an insatiable desire to transform the maritime sector on our continent, ready to support any initiative in that direction. Still far too rare a resource in Africa.

This year, from Banjul to Abuja, via Lagos, I met blue professionals who are profoundly transforming their sector without making half the noise of opportunists who only come to capture funding linked to the development of the blue economy. In Lagos especially, I met women who, far from merely denouncing their underrepresentation in maritime industries, take action and produce concrete results with their own resources. They do not wait: they set their course, create, grow ideas, projects, businesses—and do so with a determination that commands respect.

Like a diver, I have moved from discovery to discovery, from wonder to wonder. And even if, as at sea, some encounters can be unsettling, I always feel the urge to go deeper, to explore new maritime horizons.

In seven years, I have allowed myself to be carried away like a beginner—calmly, surely, wave after wave. At the beginning of this year, I had to face the obvious: I have become a blue journalist and communicator, without ever planning it. This realization, while it makes me smile, also imposes a duty: to keep learning, to keep training…

What fascinates me about this field is that it encompasses a multitude of other sectors that have always interested me and are crucial for Africa’s development: logistics, education, energy, tourism, and more…

Ah, this blessed blue!

Carlos Kpodiefin – Editorial Director / Maritimafrica