- What is it?:
- It is an inter-governmental organisation aimed at strengthening regional cooperation and sustainable development within the Indian Ocean region through its 22 Member States bordering the Indian Ocean and 9 Dialogue Partners.
- The IORA is a regional forum, tripartite in nature, bringing together representatives of Government, Business, and Academia, to promote co-operation and closer interaction among them.
- Formation: It was formed in 1997
- Secretariat: Mauritius.
- Basis of Working: It is based on the principles of Open Regionalism for strengthening Economic Cooperation particularly on Trade Facilitation and Investment, Promotion as well as Social Development of the region.
- Members: The members include Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, India, Indonesia, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Seychelles, Singapore, Somalia, South-Africa, SriLanka, Tanzania, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Maldives, and Yemen.