Goa: The Indian Navy successfully hosted the fifth edition of the Goa Maritime Symposium (GMS) 2024 from September 23 to 24, under the auspices of the Naval War College, Goa. This year’s symposium was held in the newly inaugurated Chola building, a state-of-the-art facility at the Naval War College. The theme for GMS 2024, “Common Maritime Security Challenges in the IOR – Progressing Lines of Effort to Mitigate Dynamic Threats such as IUU Fishing and Other Illegal Maritime Activities”, focused on enhancing maritime security across the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) under the broader framework of Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR), a vision laid out by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Delegations from 13 countries, including Bangladesh, Indonesia, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Kenya, and Tanzania, participated in the symposium. Officers of Captain or Commander rank, representing the navies and maritime security agencies of these friendly foreign nations, contributed to the dialogue on non-traditional security threats and collaborative efforts in the maritime domain.
The GMS provided a critical platform for discussing emerging challenges such as Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, maritime trafficking, piracy, and other illegal activities that threaten regional stability. Key discussions focused on enhancing information-sharing mechanisms, strengthening regional cooperation, and exploring strategies to combat these dynamic threats.
In alignment with the SAGAR initiative, the symposium emphasized the importance of regional collaboration in ensuring security and prosperity in the IOR. The participants also deliberated on measures to bolster maritime law enforcement, improve surveillance, and mitigate the risks posed by non-traditional maritime security threats.