 The Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) extends from east of the Cape of Good Hope, northwards into Angolan waters and encompasses the full extent of Namibia's marine environment.Like the Humboldt, California and Canary current systems, the Benguela is a major coastal upwelling ecosystem and an important centre of marine biodiversity and marine food production.Distinctive bathymetry, hydrography, chemistry and trophodynamics combine to make the BCLME one of the most productive ocean areas in the world; mean annual primary productivity is 1.25 kilograms of carbon per square metre, per year – about six times higher than the North Sea ecosystem.