The three days event convened government officials and experts from 80 organisations from east Africa across to the Indian Ocean, the Pacific and both coasts of Latin America.

The meeting took place against a backdrop of increasingly complex and tensioned maritime environment, reinforcing the shared understanding that no single nation can effectively respond alone to today’s maritime safety and security challenges, to protect the shipping lines and sea-related economic activities.

During the conference, participants explored how partners can consolidate and exploit IORIS to address key challenges and threats, such as shipping security, counternarcotics, port safety, search and rescue, and the monitoring of sanctioned or falsely flagged vessels. Discussions focused on enhancing its role in live operations and regional coordination, also addressing long-term sustainability, lessons learned, and future opportunities such as the integration of Artificial Intelligence.

Opening the event, Ondrej Simek, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Kenya remarked: “Kenya sits at a strategic gateway to the Western Indian Ocean, where maritime routes connect Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and beyond. At a time when tensions around key chokepoints remind us how fragile global sea lanes can be, this conference brings together partners from Southeast Asia, the Pacific, South America, Africa and Europe with a shared purpose: to strengthen cooperation before crisis. This conference reflects the role of the European Union as a partner, facilitator and bridge between maritime communities — supporting cooperation, capacity building and coordinated action across regions that are connected by the sea.”

As Martin Cauchi Inglott, Director of EUCRIMARIO, underlined, ‘IORIS was created precisely to support super connectivity and interoperability. It is more than a digital platform; it is a concept that is bridging navies, authorities and agencies that need to work for a common understanding of the maritime domain. By enabling secure information sharing and trusted coordination, IORIS helps maritime actors strengthen safety and security where it matters most: in real time, across borders, and between partners. Today, we are here to strengthen IORIS governance collectively, so that this shared tool remains responsive to the needs of all users and continues to serve the common interest of safer, more resilient seas.’”

Hon. Onesimus Kipchumba, Murkomen EGH, Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Interior and National Administration added: ” “The Mombasa IORIS high-level conference is a convergence of like minds and stakeholders within the maritime ecosystem with a common purpose of advancing secure and safer seas and thus contributing to global peace and prosperity. The conference couldn’t have come at a better time, as the world grapples with transport challenges stemming from the Middle East crisis. IORIS is therefore one of the initiatives that promotes cooperation amongst coastal nations and explores strategies to secure common waters for all. Therefore, Kenya, a strategic maritime location connecting the east and west, avails herself to fully collaborate and cooperate with stakeholders in advancing a safer maritime domain.”

The event welcomed new organisations from eight countries, who signed the IORIS Partnership Agreement, marking their commitment to operational collaboration and shared responsibility in addressing maritime security challenges across the regions.

Opening the event, the EU Ambassador to the Philippines Massimo Santoro remarked: “The collective presence of all partners and stakeholders today underlines our shared understanding of the need to work together across agencies and borders to uphold a peaceful, secure, and rules-based maritime order in the Indo-Pacific. The European Union stands ready to support these collective efforts, fostering coordination, resilience, and freedom of navigation in line with the rule of law and the UN Charter.”

Participants will deliberate on key policy, operational and technical areas and opportunities to enhance cooperation across the region, using IORIS, from the east coast of Africa, through Asia and the Pacific, to Latin America. The event will feature presentations of success stories that illustrate the platform’s tangible impact and contribution to regional cooperation. Notable examples include the interdiction of narcotics and other contraband, life-saving interventions during complex Search and Rescue (SAR) operations, coordinated counter-piracy efforts, and cooperative actions to combat illegal, unregulated, and unreported fisheries (IUU).

“This meeting will set the path for IORIS to meet the evolving needs of our agencies and partners,” said Martin Cauchi Inglott, EU CRIMARIO project director. “We will align operational exercises, user feedback, and legal standards to build a future-ready system that strengthens trust and readiness.”

Recognizing that maritime security challenges transcend national borders, participants will work together to plan a more effective use of the platform for interagency operational coordination and international collaboration, essential to swiftly and efficiently respond to threats at sea.

Vadm Roy A. Echeverria, Director of the National Maritime Centre concluded: “In line with the recent EU-Philippines Security and Defence Dialogue, the IORIS Steering Committee Working groups meeting will further deepen our strategic partnership, opening doors for enhanced cooperation in maritime security, hybrid threats, and regional resilience. This partnership, grounded in the rule of law and international norms, underscores our shared commitment to upholding a rules-based maritime order and increase regional cooperation on maritime security.”

During the conference, officials will discuss latest IORIS improvements (such as Prime and Lite) and future plans for IORIS mobile application and variants, aimed to find suitable solutions for improving platform’s performance, usability, and operational effectiveness. Moreover, they will provide feedback on system performance, identify key successes, challenges, and lessons learned, and agree on priority improvements and follow-up actions to enhance usability and operational outcomes.

The meeting will also present plans for future IORIS trainings and exercises, including frequency, participating partners, and exercise levels, highlighting the critical role of exercises in preparing agencies for future operational challenges.

Meanwhile, the Legal Working Group will review cases concerning the admissibility of digital evidence in different jurisdictions. They will adopt a common stance on evidence obtained through IORIS and outline the legal steps required to achieve ISO 27001 certification, ensuring that digital evidence management remains secure and compliant.

In the following interview, Captain Panuphun Rakkeo, Head of the Maritime Law Enforcement Division of the Royal Thai Navy, reflects on the exercise objectives, the operational challenges addressed, and the role of the IORIS platform in supporting inter-agency collaboration, shared situational awareness, and anticipatory decision-making. His insights highlight how structured rehearsals and digital coordination tools can enhance preparedness and contribute to safer and more resilient maritime transportation routes.

What was the training objective ?The TTX we just finished aimed at developing coordination procedures and conduct rehearsals to enhance understanding of the coordination and control mechanisms for commercial vessels between the Royal Thai Navy and PTT Public Company Limited, ship-owning companies, and commercial vessels, as well as to strengthen cooperation between the Royal Thai Navy and the civilian sector in jointly safeguarding maritime routes for international inbound and outbound transportation.

The TTX focused on testing and consolidating coordination and information exchange between RTN and PTT during the passage of commercial vessels, particularly those carrying highly sensitive cargo (crude oil), through high-risk area.

More specifically, the exercise requested participants to practice, via the IORIS platform, a coordination mechanism between both institutions/ organizations aimed to accompany and protect the PTT vessels using the RTT assets.

How did the exercise improve your ability to collaborate between agencies?

A training exercise on the protection of oil tanker vessels chartered by PTT Public Company Limited while transiting through high-risk areas, aimed at promoting cooperation between the Royal Thai Navy and PTT Public Company Limited in ensuring the safety of maritime transportation routes.

The exercise is conducted in the form of a Table Top Exercise, which enables participants to learn procedures, roles, responsibilities, and interactions among trainees prior to conducting the subsequent live sea exercise. In addition, the IORIS system is incorporated into the training to support coordination and operational effectiveness.

Participants from both organizations found the exercise very useful as it helped improving their ability to collaborate by using established procedures and standard reporting templates.

How did IORIS help with building and maintain a shared operational picture of the situation at sea?

Due to its specific capabilities, IORIS helped partners create a very clear and useful common operational picture, which enabled them to have a shared understanding of the situation at sea, particularly concerning the positioning of the vessels and of their possible future actions.

How effectively did IORIS support the timely exchange of information between participating agencies?

Designed to mainly support information exchange and coordination between partners, IORIS played a key role in the exercise by enabling participants to inform each other on their intentions, actions and results of their actions.

How effectively did IORIS support collaboration across agencies, particularly in a time-sensitive situation?

The constant information exchange between participants enabled a open and constructive collaboration which increased the level of trust and confidence between the two organizations.

Based on this exercise, what would be the single improvement that you appreciated about IORIS helping with the ability to respond to similar situations?

The use of IORIS was very beneficial particularly in enabling the establishment of a common operational picture accessible at any moment for all actors and in facilitating the testing and improvement of the existing dedicated SOP

Did the information facilitated through IORIS allow you to anticipate developments rather than react to them?

Exactly, the coordination enabled by IORIS and the creation of an up-to-date common operational picture, facilitated the possible anticipation of events rather than just directly reacting to them.

Building on the outcomes of this Table Top Exercise, the Royal Thai Navy and PTT Public Company Limited will jointly conduct a live sea exercise in February 2026. The exercise will involve a very large crude carrier provided by PTT Public Company Limited transiting inbound to Thailand, with the Royal Thai Navy deploying naval vessels and aircraft to conduct escort and protection operations in high-risk areas. Throughout the exercise, the overall operational picture and information exchange between Royal Thai Navy units and PTT Public Company Limited will be managed through the IORIS system, enabling all participants to maintain a shared operational picture and enhanced situational awareness.