Nigeria and Shipping industry launch strategy to eliminate piracy threat in Gulf of Guinea
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The Government of Nigeria and a coalition of global shipping stakeholders have launched a new strategy to end piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG).
The strategy establishes a mechanism to periodically assess the effectiveness of country-piracy initiatives and commitments in the GoG. Targeted at all stakeholders operating in the region, it will identify areas of improvement and reinforcement in order to eliminate piracy.
The plan is split into two mutually supportive sections, (1) actions which can be overseen by the Nigerian Industry Working Group (NIWG), and (2) actions which require engagement with other regional and international partners. The strategic ambition of the coalition is to eliminate piracy in the GoG, to secure trade routes, reassure traversing crews, and support local communities.
In May, the UN Security Council condemned the GoG as the world’s piracy hotspot. Despite the International Maritime Bureau’s Piracy Reporting Center tracking an overall drop in global piracy during 2021, threat levels in the region remain high. Piracy activity in the GoG has posed a severe threat to seafarers and local communities for over a decade.
In 2020, 40 percent of piracy attacks, and 95 percent of crew kidnappings occurred in the region. However, attacks decreased by nearly 60 percent in 2021, following the establishment of Deep Blue, the Nigerian Navy and Nigerian Maritime Safety Agency (NIMASA) anti-piracy project, and increased international counter-piracy operations in the GoG.
A spokesperson of the Nigerian Navy concluded: “The Nigerian Navy plays a vital role in ensuring maritime security. Collaborating with national as well as international stakeholders is most important, and this joint strategy demonstrates the good that can be achieved by working together.”
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
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