Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The fifth edition of the Goa Maritime Conclave (GMC-26) will be held at the Naval War College on February 21, 2026. The biennial conclave is a flagship strategic initiative of the Indian Navy aimed at strengthening maritime cooperation among nations of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
Sanjay Seth, Raksha Rajya Mantri, will attend the event as Chief Guest.
Chief of the Naval Staff Dinesh K Tripathi will host Chiefs of Navies, Heads of Maritime Forces, and senior representatives from 14 IOR nations — Bangladesh, Comoros, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Myanmar, Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Tanzania.
The theme of GMC-26 is ‘Common Maritime Security Challenges in the IOR — Progressing Line of Efforts (LsoE) to Mitigate Dynamic Threats such as IUU Fishing and other Illegal Maritime Activities.’ The focus will be on enhancing synergy, coordination and collaboration among maritime nations to address evolving security concerns in the region.
Instituted in 2017, the Goa Maritime Conclave, along with the Goa Maritime Symposium (GMS) launched in 2016, aims to foster collaborative thinking and mutual understanding between India and key maritime nations in line with the MAHASAGAR (Mutual and Holistic Advancement for Security and Growth Across Regions) vision. The GMC is conducted biennially and is preceded by the GMS, which serves as a feeder event through working-level engagements.
The maritime domain in the IOR continues to face both traditional and non-traditional challenges, including maritime terrorism, piracy, armed robbery, contraband smuggling, Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) fishing, and irregular migration. Emerging threats such as climate change, cyber risks and dark shipping further complicate the security landscape, underscoring the need for stronger collaborative mechanisms.
The Conclave will feature deliberations by eminent speakers and subject-matter experts focusing on real-time maritime information sharing and capacity-building efforts. Arun Prakash (Retd), former Chief of the Naval Staff, will deliver the keynote address.
The Goa Maritime Conclave continues to serve as a significant platform for shaping and implementing collaborative solutions to maritime security challenges in the Indian Ocean Region.
