The Western Indian Ocean is one of the world’s most strategically consequential maritime spaces. It encompasses critical sea lanes through which a significant share of global trade transits, including Gulf oil exports, East African commodities, and container traffic between Asia and Europe. It is also a region of intensifying geopolitical competition, where the interests of Gulf states, Asian powers, Western navies, and littoral African states intersect, and frequently collide, over access to ports, basing rights, fishing grounds, and undersea resources.

For the Horn of Africa specifically, the maritime domain is inseparable from security, development, and sovereignty. The resurgence of piracy, the expansion of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, the exploitation of maritime boundary ambiguities, and the growing militarisation of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden all carry direct consequences for Horn of Africa states whose economic prospects, security environments, and diplomatic relationships are shaped by their maritime geography. The Western Indian Ocean Program provides a platform for rigorous research and policy engagement on these intersecting issues and challenges. The program examines maritime security threats, governance frameworks, blue economy development, climate-related maritime risks, and the geopolitical competition shaping the Western Indian Ocean littoral. It works with governments, regional bodies, and international partners to strengthen maritime governance and advance evidence-based policy.