Maritime Authorities from Central America and the Dominican Republic participated in the XXXII Ordinary Meeting of the Operational Network for Regional Cooperation among Maritime Authorities of Central America and the Dominican Republic (ROCRAM-CA), held on 11–12 November in San José, Costa Rica, to follow up on regional commitments and discuss initiatives aimed at strengthening maritime and port development.
The meeting brought together representatives from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama and the Dominican Republic, who shared experiences and national progress in implementing the Central American Regional Maritime-Port Strategy (EMPRCA), highlighting the actions undertaken by each country and their contributions to achieving regional objectives.
Throughout the two-day meeting, participants addressed various matters of common interest, including maritime safety, protection of the marine environment, implementation of international conventions, port emergency preparedness and response, and institutional capacity-building.
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) was also represented virtually by Carlos Salgado, Head of the Latin America and Caribbean (LACAR) Section, who participated in the first day’s proceedings.
One of the meeting’s highlights was the holding of two working sessions dedicated to the development of the ROCRAM-CA Regional Maritime Strategy, an initiative promoted by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), in cooperation with the Central American Commission on Maritime Transport (COCATRAM) and the participating Maritime Authorities.
The sessions, facilitated by IMO consultants Roberto Annichini from Argentina and Mauricio Riquelme from Chile, focused on assessing and prioritizing regional needs, as well as identifying strategic objectives and guidelines for developing a roadmap to strengthen maritime cooperation.
Funded by the Government of Malaysia, this initiative seeks to establish a practical framework for regional coordination, based on shared priorities and the needs identified by the participating Maritime Administrations.
The development of this strategy is part of a broader cooperation process, following the phased approach agreed upon during the First Joint Meeting of Directors and Heads of Maritime Administrations of Latin America (DAMLa 1), held in Guatemala in July 2026.
In September, IMO launched the consultation phase for the development of the ROCRAM-CA Regional Maritime Strategy through a virtual meeting with representatives of the participating Maritime Administrations.
The sessions held in Costa Rica build on these coordination and planning efforts, which envisage the development of a strategy accompanied by an implementation roadmap to guide future technical cooperation activities and regional maritime development.
The XXXII ROCRAM-CA Ordinary Meeting concluded with the presentation of the resolutions adopted during the two days of work. It was also agreed that Panama will host the next Ordinary Meeting, scheduled for 2027.
