South West Pacific Hydrographic Commission Meeting Highlights

18thMeeting of the South West Pacific Hydrographic Commission (SWPHC) IHO Secretariat Report By Abri Kampfer IHO Director

AGENDA 1. Regional and IHO membership 2. 2nd IHO Assembly main outcomes 3. 4th IHO Council main outcomes 4. IHO Outreach 5. Actions requested of SWPHC 2 2

Regional and IHO Membership The non-IHO Member States of the SWPHC region are: Cook Islands, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, and Palau. Since the last SWPHC Conference the Republic of Ghana, Samoa and Lebanon acceded to the IHO Convention and the IHO membership now stands at 94. The IHO Secretariat, in cooperation with the Department of External Relations of the Government of Monaco, stands ready to assist those non- IHO Member States with the application process for membership of the IHO, as recently done with two non-IHO Member States. 3 3

2nd IHO ASSEMBLY The 2nd Assembly, structured as 3 daily remote sessions of 3 hours each, examined 17 proposals and several reports tabled by Member States, by subordinate organs and by the Secretary-General. The Assembly agreed on 52 decisions, including the approval of the revised Strategic Plan, the Work Programme and Budget of the Organization for the next three-year period by consensus, using the silence procedure. All the documents related to the 2nd Assembly are available at the IHO website such as the "Final Summary Records" and the "Assembly Decisions". The Proceedings, when ready, will be available there as well. The Assembly agreed in principle to host its third session from 25 to 29 April 2023 in Monaco. 4 4

2nd IHO ASSEMBLY main outcomes The IHO Member States approved (via IHO Circular Letters and at A-2): New IHO Strategic Plan S-100 Implementation Strategy A joint IHO-Singapore Innovation and Technology Laboratory Project on Empowering Women in Hydrography (EWH) proposed by CANADA New IHO e-learning center hosted by ROK at the KHOA IHO Resolution 2/1997 SWPHC is invited to adapt their respective instruments to comply with the recommendations of the IHO Resolution 2/1997 as amended by A-2 (Establishment of RHCs). 5 5

4th IHO COUNCIL IHO Council 4 Meeting convened 19 November 2020 by VTC. The C-4 Summary Report with the List of Decisions and Actions is available on the IHO website. Secretary General confirmed the decision fromA-2 the formal establishment and membership of the Council (next 3 years) and the election of new Chair and Vice-Chair of Council Dr Genevi ve B chard (Canada) as Chair Mr Thai Low Ying-Huang (Singapore) as Vice-Chair Council congratulated the IHO Secretariat for being so flexible and dynamic to meet the challenges presented during this pandemic by convening virtual meetings. It was confirmed that Member States at theA-2 approved the IHO Strategic Plan (6 years). Pandemic will force all to do things differently whilst still achieving the IHO goals.

COUNCIL REFLECTIONS FROM 2nd ASSEMBLY The Council will need to effect the Strategic Plan focusing on: implementation of the S-100 Roadmap, which included S-100 standards, seamlessly integrated with other data such as navigational aid information and weather; technical, operation and regulatory challenges associated with the transition from paper-based products and S-57 ENCs to the S-100 suite of standards and services; capacity building initiatives supported by the E-learning Project (Republic South Korea); supporting the Empowering of Women in Hydrography Project; and providing oversight to IHO Work Programme and Budget DecisionA2/02 was noted in particular. This decision approves the interpretation that the Council has the authority to request and consider proposals submitted by Member States or the Secretary-General and confirmed that the Council is entitled to propose amendments to the General Regulations of the IHO for Member States approval.

COUNCIL REFLECTIONS FROM ASSEMBLY 2 (CONTD) The Council agreed to include a standing agenda item in future Council meetings on the joint IHO-Singapore Innovation and T echnology Laboratory (deadline C-5) The Governing Board of the Laboratory to report on an annual basis Council to advise the Laboratory on themes and projects to be considered Possible topics for consideration of the Governing Board: ENC Dual Fuel Concept Conversion of S-57 to S-101 and vice-versa The definition of hydrographic interest continued in tradition to draw much debate The Council invited Member States to submit a joint proposal on the definition of hydrographic interest by C-5. Council also reiterated the non-Council Member States were free to participate as observers as with any IHO Working Group, Committee etc.

SUBSIDUARY ORGANS (HSSC AND IRCC) The Council will monitor HSSC with the implementation by HSSC, the recommendations on the Future of the Paper Chart; Roadmap for the S-100 Implementation Decade; further development of S-100 Standards; and the development of synoptic summary report on the various options offered to HOs for future production of S-101 ENCs in conjunction with S-57 maintenance/production. The Council endorsed the priorities of the IRCC: further cooperation between RHCs and between RHCs and IHO; cooperation between the subordinate bodies of IRCC; the alignment of national reports with the new work programme; outreach; and a number of cross-sectional topics e-learning development, data collection and dissemination, and technical developments (Seabed 2030 Project, MSI, MSDI, CSB, WENDWG for the development of future S-100 products).

IHO WORK PLAN, BUDGET AND STRATEGIC PLAN REVIEW IHO Work Plan Council approved the IHO Work Plan for 2021 and noted the proposed theme for the 2021 World Hydrography Day by the Secretary-General 100 Years of International Cooperation in Hydrography Budget The Council approved the 2021 budget. The Council noted the decision byA-2 to authorize the Council to increase Member States contributions by 1% in 2022 (and/or 2023) subject to the IHO s financial situation this decision will be taken at C-5. Council also encourage Secretary General to secure additional funding through negotiated cooperation agreements with Member States and or partnering organizations. Strategic Work Plan Review The Strategic Work Plan approved byA-2 must be implemented by Council. The SPRWG was disbanded by Council The effective implementation of the Strategic Plan 2021-2026 is to be considered as the main theme of supervision and control of the Council untilA-3, keeping in mind to apply the principles of ISO 9001 RHC encouraged to implement Strategic Plan and consider during this process, following gap analysis if appropriate, whether our organization and work programmes are fit for purpose, in particular for meeting Goals 2 and 3. Feedback required by C-5

IHO Outreach The theme for WHD 2021 is: "One hundred years of international cooperation in hydrography". The theme is designed to showcase progress in knowledge and technology over the past 100 years, while celebrating the ground-breaking work which was done during this period. The goal is to highlight the past, present, and future of hydrography by showing the important work of early hydrographers, progress in technology, and state of the art in technology. The Secretariat invites Member States to share historical pictures of their work as well as pictures/videos of modern technologies such as autonomous vehicles and drones. Member States are invited to send such material to the IHO Secretariat -attention to the Public Relations and Communication Officer (email: prco@iho.int) by 15 March 2021. The" peak-of-the-peak" will be World Hydrography Day (WHD) on 21 June 2021. There will also be an opportunity to present IHO's achievements at the United Nations General Assembly in September 2021 and at the IMO Assembly in November 2021. The newest IHR issue (November 2020) was recently uploaded and a new website www.ihr.iho.int will become operational within the first quarter of 2021 to offer IHR content in a contemporary way. 11 11

Actions requested of SWPHC Note this report and Keep on in support of the IHO Work Programme under the new Strategic Plan consisting of the following main goals: Goal 1: Evolving the hydrographic support for safety and efficiency of maritime profound transformation. navigation, undergoing Goal 2: Increasing the use of hydrographic data for the benefit of society. Goal 3: Participating actively in international initiatives related to the knowledge and the sustainable use of the Ocean. 12 12