During a meeting held in Alexandria, Egypt, in November 1989, it was decided to establish a Mutual Aid Center for marine emergencies in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden region. The center, later named the Emergency Mutual Aid Centre for the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden “EMARSGA”, was set up in Hurghada, Egypt.

On October 14, 2003, a Host Agreement was signed between PERSGA and Egypt’s State Ministry for Environment, allowing EMARSGA to operate within the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) headquarters in Hurghada. The center was officially inaugurated on May 20, 2006.

The Center aims to facilitate cooperation amongst PERSGA member countries in order to combat pollution by oil and other harmful substances in cases of marine emergencies, assisting member states, which so request, in the development of their own national capabilities to combat pollution by oil and other harmful substances, and establishing effective Regional Information System (RIS) to coordinate and facilitate information exchange and swift responses in cases of marine emergencies.