The Charter formalized the PNLC and specified the ground rules on membership and identified joint activities and outputs amongst its members as well as options for sustainability and funding support.

Viet Nam is one of the founding participants in the PEMSEA project, and has become an example of integrating integrated coastal management (ICM) throughout different levels of policy and practice.

The Preah Sihanouk Ministerial Declaration was signed by senior government officials of PEMSEA’s country partners. One integral part of this Declaration is the endorsement of the formulation of the PEMSEA Roadmap to 2030, which aims to combine the values, principles, and key achievements that were carefully cultivated and replicated through years of transforming the EAS Partnership from a regional marine pollution project into a leading regional collaborative mechanism and the available opportunities that will enable the Partnership to maintain its relevance and fit for purpose in the region.

The PEMSEA Network of Local Governments (PNLG) for Sustainable Coastal Development was established in 2001 as the Regional Network of Local Governments (RNLG) and officially launched as PNLG in December 2006 in Haikou, China, with the signing of the PNLG Charter and Code of Conduct by 18 founding local government members. It is a unique regional community of local governments that are working towards sustainable growth and development in the East Asian Region through integrated coastal management (ICM).

This declaration was written and agreed upon by the delegates of the Fifth EAS Youth Forum, held in Iloilo City, Philippines, from 26-30 November 2018.

It was presented by the PEMSEA Network of Young Leaders (PNYL) Captain John Carl Alonsagay during the closing ceremony of the EAS Congress 2018.

The Iloilo Ministerial Declaration was signed by Ministers from PEMSEA country partners on 29 November 2018 during the Sixth Ministerial Forum, part of the Sixth East Asian Seas Congress.