Why Is IORA Considered to Have Failed to Become a Mega-Regional Organization?

International relations are interactions between international actors, one of which is a sovereign state. According to an expert named McClelland, international relations states that international relations is the study of interactions between certain types of social units and also includes studies that discuss the relevant circumstances surrounding the interactions. Meanwhile, according to another expert, namely J.C. Johari, international relations is a study of interactions between countries in the sovereign world. Interaction in international relations can take the form of international cooperation. In this interaction, there are two types of international cooperation, namely bilateral and multilateral. Bilateral cooperation is usually considered more effective in producing decisions or policies for both parties because it only involves two parties. However, unlike multilateral cooperation which involves many parties or actors, multilateral cooperation requires an organization as a forum or forum for cooperation to produce the most profitable or best policies or decisions for the participating parties. One example of a forum for multilateral cooperation in the international scope is IORA.

Do you know what IORA is?

The Indian Ocean Rim Association or IORA, is a pioneer and the only mega-regional organization in the Indian Ocean region. Before IORA was officially established on March 7 1997, initially this mega-regional organization was called the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC), and only changed to "IORA" at the 13th Ministerial Meeting in Perth. The Indian Ocean region is an important water area, because it is a strategic international trade route from Asia to Europe and from Europe to Asia. IORA was officially founded in 1997 with 23 member countries namely, Indonesia, India, South Africa, Australia, Bangladesh, Comoros, France, Iran, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Seychelles, Singapore , Somalia, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand and Yemen.

IORA has 6 priority areas of cooperation, namely Maritime Safety and Security, Natural Disaster Risk Management, Trade and Investment Facilitation, Fisheries Management, Cultural and Tourism Exchanges, and Academic and Science and Technology Cooperation. Apart from that, IORA also raised two important issues, namely the Blue Economy and Women's Economic Empowerment.

IORA, until now, is still not considered successful in becoming an ideal international organization. IORA still does not have legal personnel status, which is one of the ideal requirements for an international organization. The legal status of personnel is a law that binds member countries to membership in an international organization. IORA also still only bridges international cooperative relations in bilateral form. IORA, which should be a forum for implementing multilateral cooperation among its member countries, has not yet produced multilateral cooperation among its member countries. This is because IORA has not been able to overcome or resolve its obstacles and challenges properly.

IORA, which is a mega-regional cooperation organization, in achieving its founding goals or in carrying out its cooperation, of course, has its obstacles and challenges. Obstacles and challenges that have not been overcome have resulted in the failure of IORA as a Mega-regional Organization in the Indian Ocean region. The following are the obstacles and challenges of IORA, namely:

1. Regional stability and security.

There are many risks of natural disasters in the region, such as the 2004 tsunami disaster, there are maritime boundary disputes in member countries such as the Maritime Delimitation Dispute between Somalia and Kenya, as well as the presence of pirates, fishing theft, irregular migration, drug trafficking, and climate change. This can make it difficult to achieve one of IORA's main goals, namely, the "Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace."

2. The legal status of personnel or legal power in the IORA organization is not strong enough.

There is no legal authority for this organization that can be accepted (by other parties) and applied in carrying out activities on an international scope, which are not just activities within the national scope of one or each of its member countries (not just a grouping of several countries). Which can be recognized as a separate entity in transactions or relationships with other parties or outside the organization's membership. Therefore, the IORA mega-regional organization is considered not yet able to become a legal subject and cannot carry out its cooperative activities in multilateral cooperation but is still only in bilateral relations.

3. Differences in the interests of member countries

With few developed countries as members, IORA's membership is dominated by developing countries. This will of course influence the priority interests of member countries. A developing country usually has conditions that are less supportive of international cooperative relations, namely because there are still many domestic problems that can affect the priority interests of the country. Thus, the interest in developing international cooperation through an international organization is not a priority. This will hurt the interests of the organization, namely in this case, the interests of IORA.

4. Lack of capacity from member countries

Significant differences in reliance on particular economic sectors, such as industry, agriculture, or services, can create complex dynamics in formulating agreements that benefit all parties. IORA developing member countries may also be facing financial constraints that limit their ability to actively engage in regional projects or initiatives. This could be detrimental to capacity-building efforts and full participation in diplomatic forums. Additionally, it lacks the infrastructure and technology necessary to engage effectively in digital diplomacy and regional initiatives. This gap can hinder their access to information and participation in meetings and negotiations.

The domestic differences between the 20 developing countries that are members of the IORA can then reflect the political, security, and economic power and imbalances between the IORA member countries. So it can be said, that IORA member countries experiencing political instability may face limitations in active participation in diplomatic forums. Decision-making and negotiation processes will also become more complicated, and the presence of strong delegates may be compromised, reducing the effectiveness of negotiations.

To overcome these obstacles and challenges, IORA needs to fix obstacles to the legal status of personnel or legal powers within its organization first, namely by making new binding agreements with all member countries, which contain solutions or actions to overcome existing challenges and obstacles. Thus, a strong and systematic basis for problem-solving is formed in resolving existing obstacles and challenges.

Sumber:

(Humaira, 2023)
(Kementrian Luar Negeri, 2023)

My name is Anne Mathofania from the International Relations Study Program, Faculty of Business and Humanities, Yogyakarta Technology University. I chose the International Relations study program as my major because I feel very interested in political issues, human rights issues, national security issues, and environmental issues, both domestically and globally. I feel happy learning new knowledge and culture from foreign countries. I felt I had to expand my knowledge of the world. So with my interest in world issues, I like international politics courses. I have a favorite lecturer, namely Mrs. Lucitania Rizky. Even though he didn't teach my favorite subject, he still managed to make me feel interested and enthusiastic about the knowledge of the material he presented. Currently, I plan to take a concentration in public international relations because I feel more interested and enthusiastic about studying relations between countries in the world.