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Representatives of 26 countries sitting on the IHO Council and Observers gathered last week in Monaco to review the work carried out and establish priorities for the coming years. This included progress with the transition to digital data services through the implementation of S-100, the Universal Digital Data Model, as well as hydrography’s contribution to global initiatives such as the Digital Twin of the Ocean.

As part of its mission to induce “transformative ocean science solutions for sustainable development, connecting people and our ocean”, the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (UN Ocean Decade) has endorsed the IHO’s Empowering Women in Hydrography (EWH) project as an Ocean Decade Action.

The IHO participated in the XIII Trans-Regional Seapower Symposium held in Venice, Italy from 5-7 October to discuss the IHO’s tasks, mission and challenges within the UN Ocean Decade. Organized by the Italian Navy and hosted in the historical setting of the Arsenal of Venice, the symposium provided an open and inclusive forum where navies, industries, public institutions, academia and international organizations engaged in across-the-board debates involving the diverse community of players in the national and international marine cluster.

The IHO paid a high level visit to the Plurinational State of Bolivia on 5 and 6 September, during which hydrographic services for inland waterways were discussed. The landlocked nation borders on several lakes, including Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, and also has rivers which form part of the Amazon Basin. These play a vital role in the transport of people and goods in the region.

Due to uncertainties regarding the availability of the traditional venue for the Assembly linked with its current use, the IHO Secretariat looked for alternatives. The Directing Committee has, after careful consideration and bearing in mind the organizational, logistical and financial consequences not limited to the Secretariat, decided that the 3rd Session of the IHO Assembly will take place at the Grimaldi Forum in the Principality of Monaco from 2 to 5 May 2023.

The IHO attended the graduation ceremony for the ten Hydrographic Science students at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM), USA, on Friday 29 July . Of these, three students from Bangladesh, Philippines, and Thailand were part of the Category "A" Master of Science in Hydrographic Science Programme under the IHO-Republic of Korea (ROK) Programme of Technical Cooperation.

The IHO organized a side event on the role of marine data to help address the competing needs of a broad range of ocean stakeholders at the UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon on 28 June 2022. With many sessions during the week highlighting the need for baseline data and ocean mapping to support decision-making, this side event enabled panellists to draw attention to the central role hydrography can play in these endeavours.

As part of its mission to contribute proactively to global initiatives in favour of the ocean, the IHO participated in the 55^th meeting of the IOC UNESCO Executive Council in Paris 13-17 June 2022. Discussions focused on the state of the ocean and provided insight into how the IHO could contribute to key activities such as the UN Decade, as well as provide an update on joint projects including GEBCO.

The Inter-Regional Coordination Committee (IRCC) met last week in Denpasar, Bali to review progress and next steps for the Regional Hydrographic Commissions and various thematic working groups. Hosted by Pushidrosal, the Hydrographic and Oceanographic Centre of the Indonesian Navy, it provided a forum to discuss ocean mapping, nautical cartography, capacity-building, etc. as well as to identify actions to be taken at regional and global levels.