Updates from the Ipieca-IMO Global Initiative

3 February 2025

Assisting countries to develop national structures and capability for oil spill preparedness and response.

Taking place in Togo, the 10th GIWACAF regional conference brought together 120 participants, including key government and industry representatives from 20 African countries to share good practice, run scenario-based practical exercises and assess regional progression oil spill preparedness and response. Click here for more details. The conference report will be shared on the GI WACAF website in mid-February.

The GI WACAF secretariat is currently drafting its strategic action plan for 2025-2027 and the 2025 working plan based in part on different outcomes from the 10th regional conference and priorities defined by GI WACAF partner countries in their action plans.
During Q1 2025, GI WACAF will relaunch its support to São Tomé and Príncipe for the finalisation of the national oil spill contingency plan, initiate technical support to Guinea for the development of its national oil spill contingency plan and provide support to some countries to draft their dispersants use policy regulation.
At Interspill 2025 in London, the GI WACAF secretariat will present on ‘Gearing technical cooperation to the needs of the region– how the support of the GI WACAF project has evolved to enhance oil spill preparedness’.
The next local industry engagement call on past, current or future oil spill preparedness and response activities in the region will take place in March 2025.

The Caspian Sea littoral states have finalised the regional plan of cooperation for oil pollution incidents under the Aktau Protocol. The final draft will be submitted to the next meeting of the Tehran Convention Parties (Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan).
A sub-regional workshop for the Black Sea, organized by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), identified a series of actions to improve national oil spill preparedness and coordination between littoral states.
A workshop in Istanbul provided the opportunity to visit Türkiye's national response facility in Tekirdag on the Marmara Sea.

The Caspian Sea region will continue to practice its cooperation procedures under the Aktau Protocol through its exercise programme.
Sub-regional exercises for the Black Sea have been proposed for 2025, including one to be hosted by Romania.
Kazakhstan is making progress with the ratification of key IMO conventions relating to oil spills.

Delivered a regional workshop in Bangkok to finalise a set of guidelines to manage the use of chemical dispersants to respond to oil spills in the Gulf of Thailand region. The workshop brought together 30 officials from government agencies in Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam, alongside industry representatives. Find out more here.
GI SEA took part in the 13th Thailand Oil and Chemical Response Exercise organized by Thailand’s Marine Department.
Separately to the above exercise, GI SEA delivered a national workshop on claims handling and administration for Thailand.
Hosted a workshop to support the update of the Philippines national oil spill contingency plan and national framework on oil and chemical spill preparedness and response.
Participated in the 47th ASEAN Maritime Transport Working Group Meeting, hosted by the Maritime and Port Authority of Brunei Darussalam. GI SEA updated the ASEAN member states on oil spill preparedness activities in 2024.
At the 15th Cooperation Forum and 47th Tri-Partite Technical Expert Group Meeting, held in Indonesia, GISEA presented on the updated Readiness Evaluation Tool for Oil Spills (RETOS™) app.
GI SEA held a session on ‘Global challenges, local solutions’ at the 2024 East Asian Seas Congress.

GI SEA is currently drafting its 2025 implementation plan. Lessons from past activities and learnings from other GI regional projects will be factored into the plan.
GI SEA will take part in the 48th meeting of the ASEAN Maritime Transport Working Group, to be hosted by Brunei Darussalam in Q2 2025.
During Interspill2025, GI SEA will present on ‘Strengthening regional collaboration in marine spill preparedness and response – evolution and outlook for Southeast Asia’.

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