The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) convened the 27th Meeting of the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) from 19–20 May 2025, followed by the 24th Meeting of the Council of Ministers (COM) on 21 May 2025, held virtually with the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka chairing the session.
These high-level meetings brought together Foreign Ministers and Senior Officials from 23 IORA Member States, 12 Dialogue Partners, IORA Specialized Agencies and IORA Observers reaffirming the Association’s commitment to regional cooperation in the Indian Ocean region.
The COM Meeting was inaugurated by the IORA Chair, Hon. Vijitha Herath, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism of Sri Lanka. Shri P. Kumaran, Secretary (East) from the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India, the Vice-Chair of IORA, Mr. Md. Touhid Hossain, Hon’ble Foreign Adviser, People’s Republic of Bangladesh, the Past Chair of IORA and H.E. Sanjiv Ranjan, the Secretary-General of IORA, delivered opening remarks.
Following the opening session, Country Statements were delivered by Member States and Dialogue Partners, reflecting their support for IORA’s strategic vision and shared priorities.
The COM adopted two key documents: IORA Guidelines on combatting Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and IORA’s Climate Change Strategic Agenda. The theme of the 10th Indian Ocean Dialogue (IOD): “Indian Ocean in a Transforming World”, to be hosted by India, was also adopted. The Colombo Communiqué, adopted as the outcome document of the COM Meeting, embodies IORA’s collective vision and steadfast commitment to building a prosperous, inclusive, and resilient Indian Ocean Region.
The CSO and COM Meetings served as key platforms for Ministers and Senior Officials to review progress made, deliberate on ongoing initiatives, and set the strategic direction for future cooperation across IORA’s six priority areas: Maritime Safety and Security, Trade and Investment, Disaster Risk Management, Fisheries Management, Academic, Science and Technology Cooperation and Tourism and Cultural Exchanges and two cross-cutting issues: Blue Economy and Women’s Economic Empowerment.
For more information about IORA, please visit our website: www.iora.int
