The governor emphasized that Belgium has a unique partnership with the coast guard, including defense, customs, maritime services, the police and the fishing sector. “They monitor order, safety and the marine environment every day,” Decaluwé said.
Although the model needs to be professionalized, according to the governor. “All these services are doing their utmost to work well together, but there is a lot of fragmentation. We must move towards an integrated platform with its own autonomy, a management agreement and with resources,” the governor said. “There are currently seventeen partners, we have to integrate that, Flemish and federal together.”