28 February 2014: The British Virgin Islands (BVI) joined the Global Partnership for Oceans (GPO) during a ceremony at the US Department of the Interior in Washington, DC, US. The ceremony was held on the sidelines of the Global Island Partnership Information Day.

Kedrick Pickering, Deputy Premier and Minister for Natural Resources and Labour, BVI, emphasized that oceans are a vital resource to the BVI, on which the livelihoods there and so many others around the world depend.

The GPO was launched in February 2012 under the auspices of the World Bank. The partnership brings together over 140 governments, international organizations, civil society groups, and private sector interests to address threats to the health, productivity and resilience of the ocean. Its main goals are to advance sustainable fisheries, conserve the coastal and marine environment and reduce ocean pollution. [Government of the Virgin Islands News] [Global Partnership for Oceans website]