Bangladesh elected ISA president
DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENT
Bangladesh has been elected President of the Assembly of the 168-member International Seabed Authority (ISA).
The election was held in the 22nd annual session of the ISA held on Tuesday in Kingston, the capital of Jamaica. It is a remarkable achievement and honor for Bangladesh to be the President of the Assembly, which is the supreme organ of the ISA, said a foreign ministry press release yesterday.
The ISA was established in 1994 pursuant to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea-1982, aimed at administering the mineral resources of the deep seabed beyond areas of national jurisdiction.
Rear Admiral Md Khurshed Alam (Retd), Secretary (Maritime Affairs Unit of the Foreign Ministry), has since taken over as the President of the 22nd annual session of the assembly. Bangladesh also got elected in another major organ of the ISA Council for another 4-year term (2017-2020).
In the first session, after assuming the chair of the president of the assembly, Alam highlighted that Bangladesh has been active in annual sessions of the ISA and contributed to drafting of international rules and regulations.
He also highlighted a number of important developments as oceans have featured prominently in the outcome document The Future We Want and emphasised that social, economic and environmental dimensions facing the planet are interlinked and should be addressed through an integrated approach.
