IORIS : moving from situational awareness to situational understanding and action

The Structure

The Indo-Pacific governance of the IORIS platform is managed through the IORIS Steering Committee (ISC) comprised of high-level (HL) representatives of IORIS partners. The ISC, particularly through its annual HL meeting, seeks to provide strategic direction and guidance for the long-term development and use of IORIS. In line with its Terms of Reference (ToR), the responsibilities of the ISC include:

• approving and monitoring the implementation of the IORIS’ information exchange and coordination policy;
• ensuring that the IORIS platform remains aligned with its fundamental objectives1;
• approving, monitoring and reviewing IORIS’ development activities and plans, to ensure that the platform remains up to date and fit for purpose in relation to security and functionality;
• guidance on budget allocation and spending through prioritisation of work strands, once the IORIS trust fund is in place;2
• providing strategic guidance to the Policy Board;
• approving ISC Working Groups’ work and deliverables.

In order to facilitate its decision-making process, the ISC is supported by the following subsidiary bodies:

The Policy Board

The Policy Board provides guidance and implements decisions of an operational or technical nature, on behalf of the Steering Committee, particularly on the work of the Working Groups. The Policy Board’s role is to prepare strategic recommendations and guidance to be issued by the ISC, including the ISC Annual Report. It is represented by senior officials from agencies which qualify as full members and will be co-chaired by the same nationality as the ISC co-chair.

Legal Working Group

The Legal Working Group’s (LWG) general mission is to address legal aspects related to information sharing, by drafting relevant documents, such as Memoranda of Understanding, Technical Agreements, and Information Exchange Protocols, protection of personal data, etc.

Operational Working Group

The Operational Working Group (OWG) is mandated to address and clarify operational aspects related to IORIS, including operational procedures, national and regional exercises. In addition, the OWG is tasked with providing structured operational feedback to guide the identification and prioritization of operational requirements, directly informing the ongoing development and enhancement of the IORIS platform.

Functionality and Working procedures:

The PB and two Working Groups include technical experts from agencies which qualify as full members. Observers can also request participation in the Working Groups, and such participation will be approved by EU CRIMARIO on a case-by-case basis. Working Groups work primarily through video teleconferencing (VTC) and/or written correspondence and meet physically once a year to agree on their final products/ deliverables, before being proposed for endorsement to the Steering Committee.

Secretariat

EU CRIMARIO provides the Secretariat for the IORIS Steering Committee on behalf of the European Union.

The Secretariat’s tasks include, amongst others:

• Preparation of the meetings’ agenda;
• Preparation of the meetings’ minutes;
• Drafting of meetings’ final report for the IORIS Steering Committee, including the conclusions and recommendations;
• Ensuring the preparation, distribution and archiving of the meeting documents in the IORIS Website.

For any further information regarding the IORIS governance, you can consult the Terms of Reference