India as IORA Chair
STORIES, ANALYSES, EXPERT VIEWS
The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) promotes open regionalism between the countries of Asia, Africa and Australia, connected via Indian Ocean waters. India will chair IORA from November 2025 — it is now Vice-Chair. As IORA chair for the next two years, according to Pooja Bhatt (Associate Professor at O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonepat and teaches maritime geopolitics and regional institutions) “India will have three priorities: creating funding opportunities to enlarge IORA’s budget; integrating technology for data management and policy analysis, and creating maritime-ready courses with academic and research institutions using collaborations.”
Geostrategic significance of the Indian Ocean Region and IORA
Geostrategically, “the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) is a subset of the Indo-Pacific, yet unique. The Indian Ocean, home to two-thirds of humanity, has a rich and diverse marine life. It also transports 75% of global trade and 50% of daily oil consumption. It produces $1 trillion in goods and services, and its intra-IORA trade was $800 billion in 2023. However, this region is also marred by poor development, troubled political systems, climate change-induced disasters, and environmental degradation. It also faces security challenges such as piracy, terrorism, and human and drug trafficking. These supranational issues compel the regional countries to cooperate and find workable solutions.
“…..While the United States, China and the European Union are IORA’s dialogue partners, it is mainly driven by only middle and small powers and, therefore, requires a tour de force to become more relevant.”
Budgetary constraints: The Indian Ocean region is relatively free of the great power competition yet has its own set of challenges, including funding. IORA’s annual budget is member-dependent. The funds generated fall short of achieving IORA’s growing areas of engagement such as maritime safety and security, fisheries management, disaster risk management, technology and innovation, and the blue economy. “Notably, each of these pillars is resource-intensive and requires constant engagement.”
India’s SAGAR vision: India’s Security and Growth for All (SAGAR) vision complements IORA’s objectives and it must leverage its excellent relations with IORA member-states to develop workable solutions.
