The five-week IOI (International Ocean Institute) Regional Ocean Governance Course has kicked off, for the 14th successive year, during a ceremony held at the University Valletta campus. This ceremony was attended by Minister for the Environment, Climate Change and Sustainable Development Hon. Jose Herrera, by University Pro-Rector Prof. Godfrey Baldacchino and by German Ambassador to Malta His Excellency Walter Haßmann, besides representatives from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Trade Promotion, from the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) and by the alumni themselves.
Over the previous 13 years, the IOI Malta Training Course has trained over 250 mid-career participants hailing from a total of 35 countries bordering 4 different regional seas (Mediterranean, Black, Black and Caspian Seas) as well as from a number of observer countries, including China. This year’s course alumni total 18, hailing from Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, Cyprus, Spain, Georgia, Turkmenistan, Lithuania, Russia, China and Malta.
This training programme builds upon the more than 35 years’ experience of the International Ocean Institute in conducting training and capacity building programmes on ocean governance and this year’s programme includes an ad hoc seminar so as to reflect contemporary developments in ocean governance – Marine Genetic Resources (a seminar support by the EU Commission representation in Malta). The Ocean Governance content in fact covers contemporary approaches to coastal and ocean management, with an emphasis on moral, ethical and legal values in Ocean Governance (equity and peaceful uses of the ocean) under the governance architecture of UNCLOS and related international instruments and agreements. Two fieldtrips are also held within the course timeline, one within the Grand Harbour and Marsaxlokk and the other to the Dwejra MPA in Gozo. Some of the lectures held within the IOI Course, including the special session on Marine Spatial Planning, are offered to students following a number of other University courses, including the Master in Applied Oceanography. As of last year, the IOI Malta Training Course is accredited by the University of Malta in the form of three stand-alone Study Units (GSC5101, GSC5102, GSC5103).
The Course Director is Dr. Awni Behnam, Honorary President of the IOI, whilst Course Manager is Prof. Alan Deidun, from the Department of Geosciences, who is also the Director of the IOI Malta Training Centre. Ms. Antonella Vassallo is Managing Director at the IOI HQ on campus, and oversees the organisation of a number of similar training courses by IOI in other regions, including Canada, China, South Africa, Thailand, Turkmenistan and Brasil.
Further details about the course can be gleaned from the .
