At the 73rd Session of the UN General Assembly in New York this week, Mr. Michael Lodge Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) highlighted the organization's efforts towards achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development over the last year, and welcomed the Assembly’s acknowledgement of ISA’s key role in advancing Goal 14 on sustainable oceans.

President of the ISA Council H.E Mr. Olav Myklebust announced that an open-ended working group will convene in Kingston from 21 to 22 February 2019 to discuss the financial model under consideration, as part of the draft regulations for exploitation of mineral resources in the Area.

Open to all stakeholders and chaired by the Council President, the informal working group of the whole will review the comparative study of alternative models prepared by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to be completed by the end of December 2018.

28 November 2018

Nairobi, Kenya (ISA News) -- The wealth of marine resources in the oceans and seas surrounding the African Continent has the potential to be a key driver for the development of Africa’s Blue Economy but greater investment and capacity building will be critical to advancing the sustainable development of Africa’s deep seabed resources.

JAMAICA, Kingston (27 November 2018) - - The Secretariat of the International Seabed Authority has released the submissions from member States and other stakeholders to the “Draft regulations on exploitation of mineral resources in the Area” (ISBA/24/LTC/WP.1/Rev.1) together with a Briefing Note (ISBA/2

Sustainable Blue Economy Conference
Nairobi, Kenya 26-28 November 2018

(23 November 2018)
How can the sustainable development of deep seabed minerals contribute to the Blue Economy and the achievement of the 2030 Agenda? What can be done to ensure the protection and preservation of the marine environment as well as equitable sharing of financial and economic benefits derived from activities in the international seabed area?

The Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) Mr. Michael Lodge is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Jihyun Lee, of the Republic of Korea as Director of the Office of Environmental Management and Mineral Resources (OEMMR). 

JAMAICA, Kingston (1 November 2018) - - The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Republic of Korea (MOF-ROK) in accordance with the contract for the exploration for polymetallic nodules with the International Seabed Authority, is offering three (3) training places to candidates from developing states under its 2019 training programme:

• Two (2) At-Sea training places onboard the RV Kilo-Moana, a cruise organized by the Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology (KIOST) between March and April 2019.

JAMAICA, Kingston (19 October 2018) - -  The International Seabed Authority, African Mineral Development Centre (AMDC) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) will co-host a workshop on Fostering cooperation to promote sustainable development of Africa’s deep seabed resources in support of Africa’s Blue Economy in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire from 22-25 October 2018.
 

JAMAICA, Kingston (11 October 2018) - The Government of Thailand, the International Seabed Authority (ISA) and the International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) will hold a second workshop on Deep Seabed Mining and Submarine Cables in Bangkok, Thailand from 29-30 October 2018.

JAMAICA, Kingston (9 October 2018) - -  The  International Seabed Authority and the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization (AALCO) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to develop and strengthen their cooperation in matters of common interest to bring about better coordination and effective implementation of their respective objectives.

The MoU was signed by Secretary-General Michael Lodge of the Authority and Secretary-General Kennedy Gastorn of AALCO in Tokyo, Japan during the Annual Session of AALCO (8-12 October, 2018).

JAMAICA, Kingston (8 October 2018) - - Technical, legal and scientific experts representing ISA exploration contractors will meet in Warsaw, Poland to begin a 2-day consultative meeting from 15-16 October 2018.

JAMAICA, Kingston (3 October 2018) - - His Excellency Mr. Francisco Javier Bernales, today presented his credentials to Secretary-General, Michael Lodge, as the new Permanent Representative of Chile to the International Seabed Authority.

Ambassador Bernales is also Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Chile to Jamaica.

A career diplomat with over twenty years of bilateral and consular experience,  Ambassador Bernales has served in Latin America, Asia, and Europe.

JAMAICA, Kingston (2 October 2018) - - His Excellency Dr. Bernd von Münchow – Pohl, today presented his Credentials to Secretary-General Michael Lodge as the Permanent Representative of Germany to the International Seabed Authority.

Prior to being posted to Jamaica, he was Ambassador of Germany to Niger.

Ambassador Dr von Münchow – Pohl has been a member of the Diplomatic Service since 1988 and has served in various functions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

JAMAICA, Kingston ( 28 September 2018) - -  “Over the next few years, I believe there will be significant opportunities for public and private industrial cooperation in many diverse fields, including exploration geology, environmental management, subsea technology, project development and financing.”

JAMAICA, Kingston (5 September 2018) - - In his statement at the BBNJ Conference currently being held at the UN headquarters in New York, and on behalf of the Secretary-General of  the International Seabed Authority,  the Deputy to the Secretary-General and Legal Counsel, Mr Alfonso Ascencio-Herrera  indicated that the International Seabed Authority - as one of the institutions created by the Convention - which remains the governing text throughout the process, stands ready to support the Conference as a whole, including by raising awareness of the scope of the Authority’s mandate and work.