Stakeholders identify causes of security threats in Gulf of Guinea
By Abimbola Abdullahi
Irked by the spate of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, concerned stakeholders in the maritime industry have identifying several factors that contributed to the attacks on ships and seafarers in recent times.
Stakeholders, who spoke at the Maritime Virtual Breakfast Meeting (MVBF), organised by the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping (NCS), said security challenge at the Gulf of Guinea has led to continued economic loss to the region and Nigeria as country.
The communiqué issued after the meeting and made available to SlyeNews revealed the causes of security threats at the Gulf of Guinea and gave recommendations geared towards ensuring safer waterways.
It identified the causes to include: legal and jurisdictional weaknesses; inadequate security; underfunded law enforcement/security agencies, natural resource mismanagement; bad governance and failure of social and economic development, among others.
President of the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping, Andy Isichei highlighted the importance of shipping trade to national economic growth and development.
He emphasized that failure to proffer solutions to the security menace in the Gulf of Guinea would lead to continued economic loss to the region and by extension Nigeria.
General Secretary of Maritime Security Providers Association of Nigeria (MASPAN), Emmanuel Maiguwa, who was the keynote speaker, said it was important to have a centralized intelligence system to identify people and assets in the maritime domain, and transparent judicial process in curbing the security unrest in the Gulf of Guinea.
The meeting, which had in attendance, NIMASA, NIWA, Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN), the Nigerian Navy and the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), adopted recommendations in addressing the security challenges in the Gulf of Guinea to include: the need for a full implementation of the Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) as well as Automatic Identification System (AIS).
Others are: Provision of a centralized intelligence and access control mechanism across regions; the role of regional information-sharing center like Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade – Gulf of Guinea (MDAT-GoG) should be enhanced as a supportive measure to improve information sharing.
The meeting also sought for full deployment of the newly acquired Deep Blue Assets by NIMASA in collaboration with the Nigerian Navy and other security agencies; adoption and successful implementation of a justice system that ensures pirates are arrested, evidence collected and preserved for successful prosecution; strategic degradation and regulation of the use of water.
Among the recommendation was that the fight against piracy in Nigeria and the entire Gulf of Guinea should be through consultation rather than confrontation and partnership other than unilateral decisions; effective securing of the inland waterways making it impossible for the pirates to carry out their inland crafts; and creation of jobs to engage people as a way of curtailing the economic hardships luring idle minds into piracy activities.
