Ambassador’s remarks at the Dialogue of Observers and Partners with the Indian Ocean Commission
(Antananarivo, 16 May 2023)
Secretary General of IOC,
Chairperson-in-Office of the Committee of IOC Permanent Liaison Officers,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
At the outset, I would like to thank Madagascar, the current chair of the Indian Ocean Commission for inviting India for today’s Dialogue of Observers and Partners with IOC.
2. Since joining the IOC as an Observer in March 2020, India has been taking part in various meetings of IOC which are open to the Observers. India is keen to working closely with all the members of IOC towards achieving strategic goals of IOC in Peace & Security, Economic Growth & Connectivity, Environment & Climate; and Human Development. We aim to build synergies in these priority areas of IOC by fully leveraging India’s developmental experience and expertise through bilateral and multilateral engagements.
3. Peace and security are of vital importance for ensuring economic growth of all countries in the Indian Ocean region. Centrally located in the Indian Ocean and the wider Indo-Pacific region, India is actively cooperating with the countries in the region both bilaterally and under the frameworks of regional organizations like the IORA (Indian Ocean Rim Association), IOC (Indian Ocean Commission), BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation), ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and and IONS (Indian Ocean Naval Symposium).
4. India’s vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) has a great deal of convergence with IOC’s own approach towards for the Indian Ocean Region. India supports greater institutional cooperation and synergy between IORA and IOC, in line with the MoU signed in February 2022. India and the members of IOC could collaborate to build convergences between the seven pillars of cooperation under IPOI (Indo-Pacific Oceans’ Initiative) and the four strategic areas of IOC. In particular, we could focus on enhancing cooperation in maritime security, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, environmental protection, blue economy and people-to-people exchanges.
5. In the area of maritime security, there is scope for greater cooperation between IFC-IOR (Information Fusion Centre for Indian Ocean Region) and RMIFC (Regional Maritime Information Fusion Centre) in Madagascar and RCOC (Regional Coordination Operations Centre) in Seychelles. In this regard, India welcomes the conclusion of the MoU between IFC-IOR and RCOC in February 2023 in order to enhance cooperation in maritime domain awareness, information sharing and expertise development.
6. In the area of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), we could promote greater synergies between IOC and IRIS (Initiative of Infrastructure for Resilient Island States) of CDRI (Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure). We could also explore cooperation between IOC and ISA (International Solar Alliance). Similarly, there is a greater scope for cooperation in Blue Economy between India and the member states of IOC.
7. India and the member states of IOC are connected by centuries old historical and cultural linkages. The people of Indian origin form an organic linkage between our vibrant and democratic societies. We look forward to further enhance people-to-people exchanges, especially among the youth, women, media, artists, academics, scholars, of IOC countries and India. We will be happy to work with IOC to take forward the cooperation in this regard.
8. In conclusion, I would like to congratulate Madagascar for its successful Presidency of IOC. I also take this opportunity to renew and reiterate India’s commitment to further deepen its cooperation under the framework of IOC.
Thank you.
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