The 8th meeting of Heads of Asian Coast Guard Agencies Meeting (HACGAM) was held on October 3, 2012 in New Delhi, it is the first ever HACGAM meeting in the South Asian Region. It was co-hosted by the Indian Coast Guard and Japan Coast Guard under the auspices of Nippon foundation, Japan.
HACGAM is an apex level forum facilitating congregation of all the major Coast Guard Agencies of Asian region. This initiative was developed initially in 2004 to discuss cooperation among the member organisations to combat piracy in the region. However, the scope of discussions has been expanded to include law enforcement, maritime security, etc. Presently, there are 21 member organisations from 17 countries that are part of the initiative.
The process of co-operation amongst the HACGAM was initiated by Japan after the capture of the pirated vessel MV Alondra Rainbow by the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in November 1999.
Subsequently, a series of regional meetings of coast guard agencies of Asia were held on combating piracy and armed robbery against ships.
