The European Union and the Kenya Coast Guard Service opened a high-level conference in Mombasa on 9 June 2026 to strengthen maritime cooperation and expand the operational use of the IORIS coordination platform, targeting safety and security challenges across the Indo-Pacific region. The three-day event, supported by the EU-funded EUCRIMARIO project, gathers government officials and experts from 80 organisations spanning east Africa, the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, and both coasts of Latin America.
Ondrej Simek, Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Kenya, said the conference aims to strengthen cooperation before crisis, noting that Kenya sits at a strategic gateway to the Western Indian Ocean where maritime routes connect Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and beyond. Hon. Onesimus Kipchumba Murkomen, Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration, described the meeting as a convergence of like minds within the maritime ecosystem to advance secure seas and global prosperity, pointing to transport challenges stemming from the Middle East crisis.
IORIS platform and operational focus
IORIS is a digital maritime coordination platform designed to enable secure information sharing and trusted coordination across navies, authorities and agencies. Martin Cauchi Inglott, Director of EUCRIMARIO, described it as more than a digital platform — a concept bridging actors that need a common understanding of the maritime domain. The conference will explore how partners can consolidate and exploit IORIS to address shipping security, counternarcotics, port safety, search and rescue, and monitoring of sanctioned or falsely flagged vessels. Discussions also cover long-term sustainability, lessons learned, and future integration of Artificial Intelligence.
New partnerships and governance
The event will welcome new organisations from eight countries signing the IORIS Partnership Agreement, committing to operational collaboration and shared responsibility in addressing maritime security challenges across regions. Participants will also work on strengthening IORIS governance to ensure the tool remains responsive to all users' needs.
Stakeholder impact
The conference directly affects maritime security agencies in participating countries, who gain access to a shared coordination tool and must align their operational procedures. Shipping and logistics companies operating in the Indo-Pacific may benefit from improved security and reduced disruption risks, though they face no direct compliance costs. EU taxpayers fund the EUCRIMARIO project, which supports capacity building and platform maintenance. National coast guards and navies in east Africa, the Indian Ocean, and Latin America stand to enhance interoperability and real-time coordination, but must invest in training and integration.
No prior coverage of this event exists in the last 180 days. The conference runs from 9 to 11 June 2026 in Mombasa.
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