With reference to 'Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC)', consider the following statements:
With reference to 'Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC)', consider the following statements:
1. It was established very recently in response to incidents of piracy and accidents of oil spills.
2. It is an alliance meant for maritime security only.
Which of the statements given above is / are correct?
(a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2
1 Answers
(d) IOR-ARC is a regional cooperation initiative of the Indian Ocean Rim countries which was established in Mauritius in March 1997 with the aim of promoting economic and technical cooperation. IOR-ARC is the only pan-Indian ocean grouping. It brings together countries from three continents having different sizes, economic strengths, and a wide diversity of languages, cultures. It aims to create a platform for trade, socio-economic and cultural cooperation in the Indian Ocean rim area, which constitutes a population of about two billion people. Presently it has 19 members- Australia, Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Malaysia, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, UAE and Yemen.
Six priority areas were identified to take forward the cooperation under IOR-ARC:
(i) Maritime Safety and Security;
(ii) Trade and Investment Facilitation;
(iii) Fisheries Management;
(iv) Disaster Risk Reduction;
(v) Academic and S&T Cooperation; and
(vi) Tourism Promotion and Cultural Exchanges.