International Seminar and Workshop on Hydrography
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International Seminar and Workshop on Hydrography

Indonesia is the largest archipelagic country in the world with 17,508 islands, 81,000km of coastline and 3.1 million km2 of maritime area. It was therefore a welcome initiative by the Indonesian Surveyor Association (ISI) and Indonesian Hydrographic Society (MHI) together with the Indonesian government related agencies, Geospatial Information Agency, Hydro-Oceanographic Office and National Land Agency to organise the International Seminar and Workshop on Hydrography. The first hydrography-related seminar event in Indonesia was held at Batam Island on 27 August 2013, followed by a two-day workshop on multibeam survey and data processing on 28 and 29 August 2013. The good relationship between ISI and MHI and the various government agencies in the hydrographic community provided a strong cooperation for this event.

The aim of the seminar was to identify the global development of science, technology as well as human resources in hydrography, particularly in Indonesia and the ASEAN region, to support sustainable development planning and the maritime industry. Therefore, the theme of this seminar was ‘Roles of Hydrography in Marine Industry and Resources Management’.

In 2008, Indonesia’s hydrographer’s society created an official organisation to support hydrographic science and technology development as well as the exchange of experiences and discussion in the media by all hydrographic survey experts and companies in Indonesia. This organisation was initiated by Prof. Sjamsir Mira and was named Indonesian Hydrographic Society. Therefore, it is particularly special that the keynote address was presented by Prof. Sjamsir Mira who highlighted the importance of exploring the ocean around Indonesia.

Among the topics covered by the technical presentations in the seminar were nautical charting and information systems, marine cadastre, digital mapping and maritime boundaries, offshore industry/marine geology/geophysics, port management/coastal engineering and marine remote sensing.

Five recommendations were made during this seminar, one of which deserves to be highlighted considering the importance of this issue worldwide: There is a need to accelerate the availability and access to geospatial information both in land and marine areas, which is useful and effective and can be justified. Marine geospatial information can be gathered through cooperation, coordination and integration supported by various institutions related to hydrography, professionals, hydrographic communities and the role of highly competent human resources in science and technology.
The Harmoni One’s Convention Hotel and Service Apartment in Batam Island provided an ideal location for the delegates and space for the exhibitors. The exhibition space was easily accessible and conveniently arranged inside the main seminar room and well equipped with tea, coffee and snacks.

Some statistics: over 40 papers, approximately 200 participants and 15 exhibiting companies and agencies created the base for this successful seminar. Although there has been an enormous amount of hydrographic activity in the Far East region there have been surprisingly few hydrographic symposia of this nature in this region. Therefore, the importance of this event for this region must not be underestimated. The Organising Committee, under chairmanship of Dr. Samsul Bachri, should be congratulated on their initiatives and efforts. The next International Seminar and Workshop on Hydrography is scheduled for 2015.

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