SEAFDEC participated in the BOBLME II Thematic Preparatory Sessions which took place from 16 to 18 February 2026 at the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Asia Regional Office, Bangkok, Thailand. The sessions were convened as part of the BOBLME II Partner Coordination Meeting to strengthen strategic alignment in preparation for the 3rd Regional Project Steering Committee (RPSC). Ms. Suwanee Sayan, Senior Project Planning and Management Officer, and Ms. Rattana Tiaye, Fisheries Management Researcher and Activity Leader for Port Management under Outcome 1.1 (EAFM), represented SEAFDEC and attended the meeting in person. Their participation reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to enhancing regional cooperation and advancing sustainable fisheries and ecosystem management in the Bay of Bengal region.
The meeting brought together representatives, along with Implementing and Executing Agencies of the BOBLME II Project, from SEAFDEC, Bay of Bengal Programme Inter-Governmental Organisation, International Union for Conservation of Nature, and Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (FAO-RAP).
Discussions focused on aligning agency priorities and strategies for the 2026 Annual Work Plan and Budget (AWP/B), and on the design of the proposed regional coordination mechanism, the Consortium for Conservation and Restoration (CCR) BOBLME under Component 5.1, which aims to strengthen institutional mechanisms at regional and national levels for planning, coordination, and monitoring of the BOBLME. Participants also initiated technical exchanges on approaches to monitoring the health of the Bay of Bengal Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) under Component 5.2, emphasizing adaptive, results based management and the sharing of information and lessons learned.
The meeting also provided a valuable platform for cross agency dialogue to identify synergies, minimize duplication of efforts, and strengthen integration across project components.
