India Virtually participated in 21st Annual Council of Ministers (COM) Meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) led by the Minister of State for External Affairs Dr.Rajkumar Ranjan Singh highlighting India’s contributions towards Disaster Risk Management (DRM) in IORA priority areas.
- Objective: To promote peace, security and prosperity in the Indian Ocean region and in the Indo- Pacific Region.
- Bangladesh, as the incoming Chair of IORA, hosted the 21st IORA COM Meeting on 17 November 2021 and the 23rd Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) and its related Meetings from 15 – 16 November 2021, in a hybrid format (in-person & virtual).
- The IORA COM which was held in a hybrid format in Dhaka and Dhaka Communique was adopted at the end of the meeting.
Indian Initiatives:
i.India contributes to IORA by assisting the IORA secretariat, conducting capacity building workshops in the field of yoga, traditional medicines, remote sensing, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and Ocean Data Management including discussions on various issues of IORA.
ii.Strategic dialogue on topic ’Impact of COVID-19 and perspectives of economic recovery in the Indian Ocean Region’ provides an overview of India’s experience in combating COVId-19 pandemic.
Highlights about IORA:
ii.IORA is a dynamic intergovernmental organisation to strengthen regional cooperation and sustainable development within the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
iii.It has 23 member states and 9 dialogue partners which are rich in cultural diversity, language, religion, traditions, arts and cuisines.
iv.Council of foreign Ministers (COM) which is the apex body of IORA meets annually.
v.The United Arab Emirates chaired IORA from November 2019 – November 2021. Bangladesh assumes chair from November 2021 – November 2023.
vi.Ambassador Salman Al-Farisi was selected as the next Secretary-General (SG) of IORA and the Russian Federation became the new Dialogue Partner of IORA.
vii.A committee of Senior Officials (CSO) meets twice a year to implement policies and improve lives of people in the Indian Ocean Region countries.
About Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA)
Secretary General – Gatot Hari Gunawan
Established – 1997
Headquarters – Ebene, Mauritius
Ambassador – Salman Al-Farisi