Mauritius is hosting the 19th plenary Meeting of the Southern African and Islands Hydrographic Commission (SAIHC) from 29 to 31 August 2023 at Le Méridien Hotel in Pointe aux Piments.
The opening ceremony was held, this morning, in presence of the Senior Chief Executive (SCE) of the Ministry of Housing and Land Use Planning, Mr Mohammad Salim Ferhat Joomun, Assistant Director of the International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO), Mr Yong Baek, and the Chairperson of the SAIHC, Mr Peter Sparkes.
Some 70 participants including 34 international delegates from United Kingdom, France, India, Zambia, Angola, amongst others, are attending the plenary meeting, which aims to assist the sustainable development of Member states of the region towards coordinated hydrographic activities and meet the objectives of the IHO.
In his address, SCE Joomun, spoke on the activities of the IHO to ensure that all the world’s seas, oceans and navigable waters are surveyed and charted in view to support safety of navigation and protection of the marine environment. The IHO, he added, is engaged in coordinating the activities of national hydrographic offices and sets standards in order to promote uniformity in nautical charts and documents.
The SAIHC as a regional commission, he stated, plays an important role to improve surveying and charting with focus on capacity building. The Meeting, he indicated, will serve as a key platform for Member states to share information concerning hydrographic organisations, foster best practices and set standards for use of hydrographic information.
SCE Joomun observed that it will also help reinforce Mauritius’s capabilities to issue survey best practices and provides guidelines to maximise the use of hydrographic information, as well as address obligations under safety of life at sea in line with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
