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The Assembly, as recommended by Committee 2, confirmed the adoption by MSC85 of resolution
MSC.280(85) of amendments to the General Provisions on Ships‟ Routeing (resolution A.572(14) as
amended) as proposed by Norway, the United Kingdom and IHO in document MSC 82/21/3.
The IMO Secretary General, in a report on IMO membership urged IMO Member States who were not
members of the IHO, to give favourable consideration to becoming members of the IHO. The
representative of the Cook Islands, in an opening speech to the Assembly, thanked the IHO, the
UKHO and SHOM for their continuing assistance in providing ENC coverage.
Delegates to the Assembly supported the idea of the Voluntary IMO Member State Audit Scheme
becoming mandatory and adopted resolution A.1018(26) “Further development of the Voluntary IMO
Member State Audit Scheme” which sets out a proposed timetable for achieving mandatory status.
Consideration of the documents at Assembly 26 proceeded faster than anticipated and the Assembly
concluded on Wednesday 2 December rather than on Friday 4 December as originally planned. The
103rd session of the Council, which followed the Assembly, elected Mr. LANTZ of the United States
as Chairman for the two year period to Assembly 27. Mr. NTULI of South Africa was re-elected as
Vice-Chairman.
INTERGOVERNMENTAL OCEANOGRAPHIC COMMISSION (IOC)
25th IOC ASSEMBLY
Paris, France, 16 – 25 June
The Director General of UNESCO addressed the Assembly highlighting the importance of IOC and
the main topics under consideration at a global level, mainly global change and its effects.
The Agenda covered a wide range of matters including statutory reports, general policy issues,
management procedures and policies for the sustainability of coastal and ocean environment and
resources, health of the ocean ecosystems, mitigation of the impacts and adapting to climate change
and variability, prevention and reduction of the impacts of natural hazards and matters related to
administration and management. Particular attention was given to subjects of IHO interest, such as
capacity building, bathymetry and tsunamis, celebration of the 50 th anniversary of IOC, election of
officers and selection of applicants for the post of Executive Secretary. 88 Member States out of 136
attended the Assembly. The Heads of the following Hydrographic Offices were also present: Brazil,
Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Germany and Turkey. Captain Gorziglia represented the IHO.
In the field of capacity building it was emphasized that UNESCO‟s priority is Africa and Small Island
Developing States (SIDS), and the importance of having a country-driven approach in the definition of
capacity building initiatives. The IHO representative underlined the strategic importance of capacity
building and the excellent relationship between IHO and IOC in this matter. In line with IHO‟s
approach, three levels were identified by the IOC Executive Secretary: assistance to governments in
developing policies; assistance in setting up institutional arrangements and assistance to individuals in
the field of education and scientific training. The Assembly requested Member States to provide
additional human and financial resources to enhance capacity building activities.
It was reported that the 2nd meeting of the Hazards Warning and Mitigation Systems Working Group
underlined the need for high-resolution bathymetry data in coastal areas and for digital elevation
models for tsunami warning and forecast operations. The IHO representative supported the report and
suggested inputs to a resolution that resulted in the following text: