22 March 2018 – Rear Admiral Joel S. Garcia, Deputy Commandant for Administration of the Philippine Coast Guard and Executive Director of the National Coast Watch Center (NCWC) under the Office of the President, was elected as Chairman of the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) for the term 2018-2021 last 20 March.
He replaced Dr. Pornchai Danvivathana, Governor of Thailand.
Admiral Garcia is in Singapore to attend the 12th Governing Council Meeting of the ReCAAP ISC on 20-22 March 2018.
ReCAAP is the first regional government-to-government agreement to promote and enhance cooperation against piracy and armed robbery against ships in Asia. It has twenty (20) contracting parties, including Europe (Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and the UK), Australia, United States and the Philippines.