The COM Meeting will be held in Abu Dhabi on November 7 under the theme of “Promoting a Shared Destiny and Path to Prosperity in the Indian Ocean”.
During the meeting, the UAE will assume the chair of the IORA for the period between 2019 and 2021, according to the IORA’s official website.
The Chairship passes from the Republic of South Africa, which has been IORA Chair for the period 2017-2019.
The People’s Republic of Bangladesh will assume the position of Vice-Chair of IORA (also for 2019-2021), and form part of the Troika along with the UAE (as incoming Chair) and South Africa (as past Chair).
The ministers’ meeting was preceded by the 21st Committee of Senior Officials’ Meeting (CSO) on 5-6 November 2019.
The CSO meets twice a year in order to review progress made by the organization and to make recommendations for endorsement and approval by the COMM.
A summary of the meetings' schedule is as follows: 5 November – 6 November 2019 – 21st Meeting of the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO); 6 November (afternoon) - Interactive Dialogue Session between IORA Senior Officials and Dialogue Partners; and 7 November 2019 – 19th IORA Council of Ministers (COM).