During the recent meetings of the ILS Board and General Assembly in Eindhoven last month, eight new member federations were accepted into the ILS family as new members in various categories.

The General Assembly granted Full Membership to the following:

• Royal Moroccan Underwater Federation
• The National Water Safety Council of Fiji

The outgoing ILS Board of Directors granted membership of ILS to the following:
Associate Membership:

• Federacao Portuguesa de Nadadores Salvadores – FEPONS of Portugal

Corresponding Membership:

• Gambia Swimming & Aquatic Sports Association
• Rwanda Lifesaving Federation

Following the Bye-Law changes that were approved by the ILS General Assembly, the new ILS Board of Directors was able to approve the following as Corresponding Members:

• Volunteer Lifeboat Corps (Cuerpo de Voluntario de los Botes Salvavidas) of Chile
• The Corporation for the Marine Prevention, Security and Lifesaving of Colombia
• The Surf Life Saving Association of Wales

John Martin MBE, the Chair of the ILS Membership Committee, has welcomed the change in the Bye-Laws. Speaking after the meetings he said, “for a long time there have been some organisations which, although not national in scope, nevertheless provide a much needed service as a lifesaving organisation within specific geographic areas within their nation. The previous membership rules prevented these organisations from ever applying to become members of the ILS. However, the Membership Committee recommended a simple change, that the General Assembly approved, and which now allows these organisations to be recognised by the ILS and welcomed into the ILS family. This ensures that the ILS reaches out to even more lifesavers across the world. We look forward to receiving more applications from similar organisations in the coming years.”