The history of ICM in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) can be traced back to 1993 when the country joined the first phase of PEMSEA’s GEF-funded project. When the second phase started in 1999, the DPR Korea designated Nampho as an ICM demonstration site along with 6 other sites in the region. The designation of Nampho as one of PEMSEA's national ICM demonstration sites was one of the driving forces for development of ICM policy in the country.

In line with the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Administration of Sea Areas (2001), all 11 coastal provinces (18,000km continental coastline) have developed and passed provincial sea area use ordinances which coordinate allocation of sea areas for various sectoral uses. Use permits providing use rights to about 10,000km2 of sea space including the use for mariculture are issued annually and generate user fees of around 1 billion RMB per year, which safeguard the legitimate right of users legally. Regular field inspections are conducted of the use permits.

Cambodia has implemented the ICM framework along 100% of its 435km coastline, covering the four coastal provinces of Kampot, Kep, Koh Kong, and Preah Sihanouk. The Government of Cambodia has established a national ICM scaling up program that promotes ICM as a national approach to sustainably manage coastal and marine resources in the country. The ocean and water resources are important to Cambodia and Cambodians. The fisheries sector is the fourth-largest employer in Cambodia, employing about 385,000 people in 2007.