The Max Planck Foundation delivered the training course in the law of the sea and ocean governance at the Regional Centre for Maritime Studies in Sri Lanka.
From 15 to 26 June 2026, the Foundation, in cooperation with the Regional Centre for Maritime Studies (RCMS) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Global Maritime Crime Program (UNODC GMCP), conducted a training course for government officials from Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka on the legal framework concerning maritime safety and security in the Indian Ocean.
During the two-week training course, participants were introduced to a wide range of topics in the international law of the sea, from the general concepts of maritime zones to pressing regional issues such as illegal fishing, the impacts of climate change, and law enforcement against drug trafficking at sea.
In addition to experts from the Foundation and UNODC, several sessions were delivered by external experts, including Dr Hilde Woker (Assistant Professor, Leiden University), Dr P Krishnan (Director, Bay of Bengal Program, Inter-Governmental Organisation), and Professor Bec Strating (Director, La Trobe Centre for Global Security and Professor of International Relations, La Trobe University).
The training combined daily seminars, case studies, expert-led discussion, and practical exercises, including quizzes, and scenario-based tabletop exercises. Participants also visited the Information Fusion Centre (IFC–Colombo), where they gained first-hand insight into the Sri Lankan Navy’s practices for safeguarding maritime security within its maritime zones.
The training also featured a moot court competition, which provided participants with an opportunity to apply the knowledge gained during the course to hypothetical case scenarios, while fostering further discussion and the exchange of views and experiences on addressing a wide range of maritime challenges.
This activity was conducted in partnership with the Regional Centre for Maritime Studies (RCMS) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), with generous funding provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the United States Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement. The Foundation looks forward to continuing this cooperation in the future.