1. IRCC11-08C
Amendment of the IHO Resolution 1/2005 as amended "IHO Response to Disasters". by Japan
IRCC11
Genoa, Italy
3-5 June 2019

2. 1. Background
Action IRCC9/31 tasked East Asia Hydrographic Commission (EAHC) Chair, which was Malaysia at that time, to liaise with Japan and coordinate with the SWPHC Chair, which is Australia, to review the IHO Resolution 1/2005 as amended "IHO Response to Disasters“ *.
The Action IRCC9/31 responds to Decision A-1/19 that tasked the IRCC to redraft the IHO Resolution and submit a draft revision to the Council, taking into consideration PRO-3 about the amendment of the IHO Resolution.
* The IHO Resolution 1/2005 as amended "IHO Response to Disasters“ describes measures to be taken by IHO MSs, RHCs and IHO Secretariat against disasters.

3. 2. Significance of the amendments
At the last IHO Assembly (IHO-A1), there were several comments that the current IHO resolution was too prescriptive and contained descriptions beyond the roles and/or scopes of RHCs and the IHO.
From the viewpoints and experiences in recent disasters, Japan and Australia prepared a revised resolution as shown in Annexes of IRCC11-08C1.

4. 3. Main points of the draft amendments
To add “Sendai Framework ” as a new international trend 　　
 reflected in the paragraph 2 of the section “1. Introduction”
To make contents less prescriptive and to avoid obligatory expressions
 reflected in the section “1. Introduction” and the section 2 Acivities a) By Coastal States
To revise descriptions which would be beyond the scope of the IHO, particularly in roles of RHC and IHO Secretariat
 reflected in the section “2. Acivities” a) By Regional Hydrographic Commissions and c) By the IHO Secretariat:

5. 3. Main points of the draft amendments (cont.)
To clarify that the role of hydrographic office in disaster response depends on a national framework in each country.
 reflected in the last paragraph of the section “1. Introduction”
To revise descriptions so that RHC and IHO Secretariat can receive information on support requests for the immediate disaster response and the recovery response as actions to be taken by coastal states.
 reflected in the paragraph 1) and 2) of the section “2 Acivities” a) By Coastal States
To add a section to mention the necessity of diplomatic clearance in advance to disaster response support
 reflected in the section “3. Diplomatic clearance”

6. 4. Justification and Impacts
The proposed draft amendment is expected to improve the feasibility and efficiency of measures against disasters by hydrographic offices in the world.
It can also respond to the “UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction ” that invites relevant international organizations to consider and implement key activities for response to disasters.

7. Action required The IRCC is invited to:
consider the draft amendments shown in the Annexes of IRCC11-08C1 with a view to submitting an agreed version to the IHO Council in accordance with Decision A-1/19.
take any other action as deemed appropriate.