ESTABLISHMENT OF ROPME

The Regional Conference of Plenipotentiaries on the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Areas of Bahrain, I.R.Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates was convened in Kuwait from 15-23 April 1978. The Conference adopted on 23 April 1978 the Action Plan for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Areas, the Kuwait Regional Convention for Co-operation on the Protection of the Marine Environment from Pollution, and the Protocol concerning Regional Co-operation in Combating Pollution by Oil and Other Harmful Substances in Cases of Emergency.
Since its establishment, ROPME has provided technical co-ordination to the Kuwait Action Plan (KAP) and assisted its eight Member States in the implementation of the Convention and its Protocols, as well as a number of projects, covering environmental assessment and environmental management, including public awareness and training.

ROPME SEA AREA

ROPME Sea Area (sometime in the past referred to as the Kuwait Action Plan Region) is the sea area surrounded by the eight Member States of ROPME: Bahrain, I.R. Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The term "ROPME Sea Area" was coined by Plenipotentiaries of the Member States to achieve unanimity in denoting the area covered by the Kuwait Regional Convention of 1978. It in fact reflects the goodwill of the Member States to co-operate in protecting their common marine environment in spite of the existing geopolitical boundaries.
According to Article II of the Kuwait Regional Convention, the ROPME Sea Area (RSA) is defined as extending between the following geographic latitudes and longitudes, respectively: 16°39''N, 53°3''30''''E; 16°00''N, 53°25''E; 17°00''N, 56°30''E; 20°30''N, 60°00''E; 25°04''N, 61°25''E.