🎙️Exclusive Interview: RADM Luigi Sinapi, Director of IHO #ihohydrography.
- M Abti
- Feb 16
- 6 min read
Updated: Jul 1
Exclusive Interview with Rear Admiral Luigi Sinapi, Director of the International Hydrographic Organisation – IHO: A Deep Dive into Hydrography and Sustainable Ocean Management
🗣️CORE CONCEPT: Hydrography as a Cornerstone of Safe Navigation, Sustainable Ocean Management, Marine Spatial Planning, and Marine Knowledge.
BIOGRAPHY
With a solid and enduring career in the Navy sector at the international level, focusing on Hydrography, Rear Admiral Luigi Sinapi was appointed on the 1st of September 2020 as the Director of the International Hydrographic Organisation – IHO. In this capacity, he has been coordinating the IHO’s program for six years. After joining the Naval Academy in Livorno in 1985, RADM Sinapi has held numerous responsible roles. Notably, he served as Commanding Officer of the MIRTO Survey Vessel, Commanding Officer of Frigate ZEFFIRO, and Commanding Officer of Destroyer DURAND DE LA PENNE. He also led the Financial Planning, Operations, and Logistics Departments of the Italian Navy General Staff. From October 2015 to July 2020, he was acknowledged as the Director of the Italian Hydrographic Institute, serving as the national Hydrographer of Italy.
RADM Sinapi's expertise encompasses Physics, Navigation, Maritime Science, International Diplomacy, Marine Geomatics, Hydrography, and International and Military Strategies. He dedicated part of his career to teaching hydrography and geodesy at the Parthenope University in Naples from 2001 to 2004. He has also lectured at various prestigious Italian universities, including the Politecnico of Turin, the Alma Mater Studiorum of Bologna, the University of Messina, the University of Pavia, and Milano Bicocca University, among others. Moreover, he has published numerous essays in national and international journals and reviews.
Throughout his career, RADM Sinapi has been awarded numerous honors, including the Commemorative Medal for the 11th Italian Expedition to Antarctica, NATO Medals for the former State of Yugoslavia and Kosovo Operations, and he has been appointed as a Knight of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.
MONACŒCOART® was honoured to collect meaningful feedback from Rear Admiral Luigi Sinapi during an exclusive interview. He underscored the crucial role of Hydrography in developing a comprehensive understanding of the ocean floor. This understanding enables the sustainable use of marine resources and fosters valuable interstate cooperation and governance.
ℹ️ International Hydrographic Organisation: IHO Official Website
🔸Questions
🗣️Taking a summary of 2025, what are the greatest achievements reached through the work of IHO to put in your top three, as the Director of IHO since 2020?
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🗣️Will the entry into force of the Treaty affect the activity of the IHO? If yes, in what terms and to what extent?
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🗣️How do you see the evolution of Hydrography during the upcoming year? Does the International Hydrographic Organisation envisage new projects to promote Sustainable Ocean Management?
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🎙INTERVIEW
MONACŒCOART®: The Blue Economy and Finance Forum - BEFF, held at the Grimaldi Forum on the 7th and 8th of June 2025, served as an integral part of the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3). It actively contributed to the transition towards new regenerative economic models, with the concrete allocation of €8.7 billion. Various interventions were identified, notably shipping and port decarbonization, marine ecosystem restoration, offshore energy sources, and biotechnology. Can you list three strong points that are generating beneficial effects, almost six months after the BEFF conclusion?
🗣️ RADM Luigi Sinapi: As IHO Director, reflecting on 2025, I would highlight three stand-out achievements that have significantly strengthened the role of Hydrography in Sustainable Ocean Stewardship.
First, I refer to the accelerated implementation of the S-100 framework and its application profiles. This initiative revolves around interoperable bathymetric datasets and specialist guidance to support marine spatial planning and area-based management measures under the High Seas Treaty. Throughout 2025, we witnessed a significant expansion of operational S-100 products across hydrographic offices and marine stakeholders. This expansion improved interoperability while enabling more effective use of hydrographic data in maritime planning, environmental assessments, and emergency response. This digital shift is rendering hydrographic information more accessible, machine-readable, and directly applicable to policymaking.
Secondly, it is essential to underline the intensified international cooperation on seabed mapping. A particularly deeper collaboration with GEBCO/Seabed 2030 has emerged (Editor’s note: Seabed 2030 is a collaborative project between GEBCO - General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans - and The Nippon Foundation, aimed at facilitating a comprehensive mapping of the global ocean floor by 2030). Additionally, an expansion of capacity-building programs for developing coastal states has taken place. These efforts have materially increased the global coverage of high-quality bathymetry, filling critical data gaps necessary for conservation planning, climate resilience modeling, and safe navigation.
Thirdly, the IHO has significantly increased its presence at high-level policy summits. In particular, we have provided authoritative hydrographic science standards and best practices to inform marine spatial planning, the designation and management of Marine Protected Areas, and coordinated responses to marine hazards and climate impacts. By integrating technical evidence into political discussions at venues such as UNOC3 (Editor’s note: United Nations Ocean Conference, held in Nice from 9th to 13th June 2025), the IHO has helped bridge science and policy to advance Ocean Protection objectives.
MONACŒCOART®: After achieving sixty ratifications in late 2025, the High Seas Treaty (BBNJ Agreement) is set to enter into force on the 17th of January 2026. The goal of regulating international marine spaces is considered a very important step, or rather a real epochal achievement, capable of accelerating the so-called “30x30” goal under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. This aims to halt biodiversity loss, combat climate change, and secure vital ecosystem services. Do you agree with this perspective? Will the entry into force of the Treaty affect the activities of the IHO? If yes, in what terms and to what extent?
🗣️ RADM Luigi Sinapi: I fully concur with your statement.
The BBNJ Agreement entering into force marks an epochal moment for Global Ocean Governance and will provide fresh momentum toward the 30x30 targets of the Kunming-Montreal Framework. For the IHO, this development complements our mandate rather than replaces it.
The effective implementation of the BBNJ will depend on accurate, standardized hydrographic and seabed data to delimit areas, evaluate baseline conditions, monitor human impacts, and assess conservation outcomes over time. Practically, this has led to an increased demand for S-100 products.
The IHO’s role will encompass supplying technical standards and data models, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration with environmental and legal organizations. This collaboration allows us to scale up targeted capacity-building efforts to assist states in meeting new obligations. In short, the BBNJ will enhance and broaden the importance of IHO’s data services, standards, and training, including coordinated efforts in the Principality of Monaco and its international partners. It will subsequently expand our advisory and operational engagement in support of treaty implementation.
MONACŒCOART®: Hydrography has evolved over time, introducing advanced technological devices such as Sonar, Lidar, AI, and Data Standardisation (S-100). It has also embraced Digital Ocean Mapping, equipped with satellites, drones, and autonomous vessels. How do you foresee the evolution of Hydrography during the upcoming year? Does the International Hydrographic Organisation envisage new projects to promote Sustainable Ocean Management?
🗣️ RADM Luigi Sinapi: Over the coming year, I anticipate that Hydrography will accelerate its technological convergence. This convergence will combine autonomous platforms (AUVs and USVs), advanced multibeam sonar, high-resolution coastal LiDAR, satellite remote sensing, and AI-driven processing pipelines. The goal is to produce faster, richer, and more cost-effective ocean maps.
We will also witness more regulated crowdsourced bathymetry initiatives, supported by quality control protocols and S-100-compatible workflows. The IHO will continue to champion S-100 as the global digital framework for interoperable marine data. We will develop new application profiles, including targeted profiles for Marine Protected Area management and environmental monitoring, while expanding user-friendly data-sharing platforms.
Additionally, the IHO aims to scale up the development of hydrographic capacities and technical assistance, particularly directed towards small island and developing states. We will foster cross-sector partnerships, integrating hydrographic data into Climate Adaptation, Biodiversity Protection, and Blue Economy planning. Our overarching goal remains unchanged: to ensure reliable, open, and standardised hydrographic information that supports safe navigation, effective ocean protection, and equitable access to marine knowledge for all stakeholders.
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FOOTNOTES
*AUVs (Autonomous Underwater Vehicles) and USVs (Unmanned Surface Vehicles) are transforming hydrographic surveys by providing efficient, high-resolution mapping of seabed, shorelines, and water columns without the need for crew on board.
** The Multibeam Echo Sounder (MBES) is an advanced sonar for 3D high-resolution bathymetric mapping of the seabed.
*** Bathymetric LiDAR is an airborne laser technique to capture geospatial data of the coastline and shallow waters, facilitating efficient and fast creation of hydrographic data.
✒️ Maurice Abbati
Strategic Communication Specialist, Editor in Chief, Journalist, Executive.
Lecturer and Author in English in the field of Environmental Communication to foster Circular and Blue Economy
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