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Major General Francis Ofori, Commander of the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Center (KAIPTC) has said that the pervasiveness of threats to maritime security in the Subregion requires a holistic approach and combat response.
He said that the sustainable development of the blue economy, improving the well-being of coastal communities, and engagement and collaboration between agencies and governments were key to reducing maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea.
Commander Ofori said this at the opening of a two-week pilot course, called “Developing Maritime Security Culture in the Gulf of Guinea” for security agencies and other stakeholders in the maritime security sector in Takoradi.
The training workshop organized by the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Center in association with the Government of Denmark was attended by more than 25 participants from the Navy, the Judiciary, the Marine Police, the Fisheries Commission, companies private shipping companies and civil society organizations.
The course, which would be implemented in five phases, would take place in Accra, Cotonou and Lagos in 2020 and 2021, with the pilot starting in Takoradi.
The course would cover topics like; legal and policy frameworks on maritime security, response to maritime security threats in the Gulf of Guinea, mapping of maritime security actors, gaps in maritime security architecture in the Gulf of Guinea, state action at sea (i.e. , national maritime safety committees), relationship management and inter – collaboration between agencies, maritime intelligence, information exchange and mechanisms for managing and reporting incidents in the Gulf of Guinea.
“In addition to exposure to theoretical fundamentals, participants will have simulation sessions during the training to familiarize them with the skills to handle real-life situations.
In addition, a panel discussion will be held with speakers from both the formal and informal maritime sectors. ”
Commander Ofori explained that the Gulf of Guinea was endowed with a vast wealth of minerals, hydrocarbon deposits and various species of marine and fishery resources, which made its waters a critical route for international trade and a bottleneck for trade. Marine transport.
“The maritime influx of this region has made it attractive to both state and non-state actors who exploit inadequate control of the region’s maritime domain to engage in illicit activities, adding that the Gulf of Guinea is currently the main access point. to piracy, kidnapping and armed robbery at sea, “he said.
According to the first quarter 2020 report from the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), there has been a 25 percent increase in piracy and armed robbery worldwide compared to 2019 figures from the same quarter.
Furthermore, the Gulf of Guinea accounted for approximately 90 percent of global hijackings with 49 crew members abducted in nine separate incidents.
Commander Ofori said the pirates’ modus operandi indicates a notable shift from oil theft to ransom hijacking, adding that this has been supported by 2019 and 2020 figures, indicating a large increase in the number kidnapping incidents in the region and an increase. in the total number of hostages taken.
This, he emphasized, has raised concerns about oil facilities, container traffic and movements of oil tankers in the region.
He said that other maritime crimes, such as illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, human trafficking and migrant smuggling, marine pollution / toxic waste dumping, illicit arms, drugs and smuggling and maritime terrorism also coexist. with piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.
He said a holistic approach to maritime security response in the region was imperative and called for commitment and collaboration between agencies.
It was my hope that the course would provide participants with a useful periscope through which mutual collaboration was achieved to ensure maritime safety in the Gulf of Guinea.
He said the outbreak of the global COVID-19 pandemic challenged traditional methods of state response to insecurity and that it was important for law enforcement agencies to think outside the box in their response to maritime insecurity.
Commander Albert Bentil Addison (Rtd), former KAIPTC deputy commander, in his welcoming address, said that crime at sea was thriving at an alarming rate in the Gulf of Guinea, making it one of the most maritime regions dangerous in the world.
He said that Takoradi and its surroundings had piracy and armed robbery at sea, illegal unreported, unregulated (IUU) fishing, human trafficking / migrant smuggling and illegal bunkering.
He called for effective collaboration, cooperation, coordination and capacity building between nations and, more importantly, key maritime institutions and congratulated the Danish Government on the sponsorship.
Thomas Norup, Danish maritime adviser, said that despite significant drops in the number of piracy incidents and maritime crime globally, the Gulf of Guinea continues to experience a growing number of maritime crime in both international and territorial waters, which makes it the most dangerous shipping lanes. in the world.
He said the world was seeing an alarming trend with more violent assaults, more kidnappings for ransom and geographic attacks, threatening the economies of the countries involved.
Norup said the situation also puts the lives of national and international seafarers at risk and affects international trade, fishing and the offshore oil sector.
“We all have the obligation to act and safeguard the maritime domain,” he stressed.
He said that the Danish government was committed to increasing the safety and security of national and international ships in the Gulf of Guinea, and to ensuring peace in West Africa and the continent as a whole and was supporting legislation, maritime strategies and research, including; capacity development of Special Forces within the Ghanaian and Nigerian navies.
Mr. Norup indicated that since the problem of maritime insecurity was regional, the Danish embassies in Ghana and Nigeria would work closely with the support and cooperation of other key stakeholders in the region.
This, he noted, would support economic growth in the region, while ensuring maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea.
— GNA
