The Indian Ocean Rim-Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC), initially known as the Indian Ocean Rim Initiative, is an international organization with 19 member states. It was first established in Mauritius on March 1995 and formally launched on 6–7 March 1997. The Association disseminates information on trade and investment regimes, with a view to helping the region's business community better understand the impediments to trade and investment within the region.

The apex body of the IOR-ARC is the Council of (Foreign) Ministers (COM). The meeting of the COM is preceded by the meetings of the Indian Ocean Rim Academic Group (IORAG), Indian Ocean Rim Business Forum (IORBF), Working Group on Trade and Investment (WGTI), and the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO). The Coordinating Secretariat of IOR-ARC is located at Ebène, Mauritius. Apart from a Secretary-General, its present staff strength at the executive level includes two Directors and eight local staff.

It comprises Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, France, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen

China, Egypt, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, Turkey, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America are Dialogue Partners of the IOR-ARC. The Indian Ocean Tourism Organisation (IOTO) and Indian Ocean Research Group (IORG) have been granted Observer Status.

OBJECTIVES

• To promote sustainable growth and balanced development of the region and Member States
• To focus on those areas of economic cooperation which provide maximum opportunities for development, shared interest, and mutual benefits
• To promote liberalization, remove impediments, and lower barriers towards a freer and enhanced flow of goods, services, investment, and technology within the Indian Ocean rim

Specialized Agencies

IORA has two specialized agencies:

1. Regional Centre for Science & Technology Transfer (RCSTT), Tehran in Iran
2. Fisheries Support Unit (FSU) in Oman

2022 Ministerial Meet

The 2022 Ministerial Meet (22nd meet) of IORA was held at Dhaka in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is the current chair of the IORA. The Council of Ministers is the chief decision-making body in the IORA.

2021 Ministerial Meet

In the 2021 Ministerial Meet (21st meet), India

• affirmed commitment to strengthen IORA
• reaffirmed its commitment to promote peace, security, and prosperity in the Indian Ocean Region as well as in the Indo-Pacific
• expressed the contributions made by it as coordinator of the IORA priority areas of Disaster Risk Management

Steps India has taken to strengthen the IORA

India undertook the following initiatives in 2021:

• assistance to the Secretariat of IORA which is located at Ebene (the cyber city) in Mauritius
• capacity building workshops in areas of Yoga, traditional medicine, remote sensing, etc.

IOR 13th Meet Australia, 2013

Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) held its 13th Council of Ministers meeting in Perth, Australia on 1 November 2013. On the occasion, India handed over the chair of the IORA to Australia. India chaired the IORA, since 2011. The Perth reviewed the process made by IORA since the 2012 meeting in Gurgaon, India. The future directions and initiatives to advance were considered for the interests of the IORA and its members.

Perth Principles

• Reiterating that IORA is the apex pan-regional organization for the Indian Ocean.
• Recalling the six priority areas of cooperation agreed upon at the eleventh COMM (Council of Ministers' Meeting) in Bengaluru, namely: Maritime Safety and Security; Trade and Investment Facilitation; Fisheries Management; Disaster Risk Management; Academic and Science and Technology Cooperation; and Tourism and Cultural Exchanges.
• Recalling Also our desire to promote the sustainable growth and balanced development of the Indian Ocean region and IORA Member States, and to create common ground for regional economic cooperation.
• Committed to promoting cooperation and collaboration between IORA and other Indian Ocean regional stakeholders including Dialogue Partner States and other regional and international forums.
• Reaffirming our commitment to the Charter of the United Nations, to the Charter of IORA, and to the applicable principles of international law.
• Reaffirming Also our commitment to 'The Future We Want', as adopted at the 2012 United Nations as Conference on Sustainable Development, and to the protection, restoration, health, productivity, and resilience of the Indian Ocean and its resources.
• Recognising that the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea provides the legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and their resources and plays a vital role in maintaining peaceful cooperation and stability across the Indian Ocean.

Delhi Declarations

As many as 21 countries in the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) adopted the Delhi Declaration on Renewable Energy in the Indian Ocean Region, post the 2^nd IORA Renewable Energy Ministerial Meeting held at the 2^nd Global Re-Invest India-ISA Partnership Renewable Energy Investor’s Meet & Expo in Greater Noida.

• The Delhi Declaration on Renewable Energy in the Indian Ocean Region calls for collaboration among IORA member states in meeting the growing demand for renewable energy in the Indian Ocean littorals, development of a common renewable energy agenda for the Indian Ocean region, and promoting regional capacity building.
• The declaration also calls for the promotion of technology development and transfer, strengthening of public-private partnerships in renewable energy, and collaboration among IORA member states and the member nations of the International Solar Alliance (ISA). IORA member countries also resolved to collaborate with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
• As per the declaration adopted, IORA member nations will collaborate with the ISA member nations to exchange knowledge and share views and potential interests in the renewable energy sector; paved by the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between IORA and ISA on 3 October 2018, with a focus on joint capacity-building programs, research & development activities in solar energy and exchange of best practices.
• Additionally, IORA member nations and IRENA will undertake the expansion of the Global Renewable Energy Atlas, the world’s largest-ever joint renewable resource data project, coordinated by IRENA, thereby creating the Indian Ocean region's first and most comprehensive map and database which can then be used to tap the sizable renewable energy potential of the region; and to collaborate on opportunities available under the International Renewable Energy Learning Platform (IRELP).

Bangladesh–China–India–Myanmar Forum for Regional Cooperation (BCIM)

• BCIM is a sub-regional organization of Asian nations aimed at greater integration of trade and investment between the four countries.
• The multi-modal corridor will be the first expressway between India and China and will pass through Myanmar and Bangladesh.
• The advantages are envisaged to accrue from greater market access for goods, services, and energy, elimination of non-tariff barriers, better trade facilitation, investment in infrastructure development, joint exploration, and development of mineral, water, and other natural resources.
• BCIM covers China's Yunnan province, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and West Bengal in Eastern India through the combination of road, rail, water, and air linkages in the region.
• The Kunming initiative developed into the current form of BCIM Forum.

About IORA

• IORA is an intergovernmental organization formed in 1997 to foster regional economic cooperation.
• Presently, it has 23 members - Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, France, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, the UAE, and Yemen.
• IORA became an observer in UNGA and the African Union in 2015.
• All decisions in the IORA are taken on a consensus basis.
• IORA Secretariat is based in Mauritius.
• The Council of Foreign Ministers, IORA's highest authority, convenes once a year.

22nd IORA Council of Ministers' Meeting

• Held in November 2022 at Dhaka in Bangladesh.
• India participated in the meeting. The Indian delegation was led by the Minister of State for External Affairs Dr. Rajkumar Ranjan Singh.
• At the meeting, India reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening IORA to promote peace, security, and prosperity in the Indian Ocean Region as well as in the Indo-Pacific.
• The Indian minister highlighted India's contribution as coordinator of the IORA priority areas of Disaster Risk Management and Science, Technology, and Innovation toward capacity building and strengthening of the IORA Secretariat.
• The Council of Ministers meeting adopted the IORA's Outlook on the Indo-Pacific (IOIP) which would guide the enhancement of IORA's engagement in the Indo-Pacific Region. India led the process of development of the IOIP.
• The ministers in the meeting endorsed India's candidature for IORA Vice-Chair for the period 2023-25 by consensus.