Despite having big potential, the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) is one of the most dangerous places when it comes to maritime security, as it faces many threats. In order to mitigate this problem, naval chiefs from 38 countries gathered in Lagos for the International Maritime Conference (IMC) to try and find solutions.
Currently, GoG faces maritime terrorism, resource theft, and sabotage of supporting infrastructure, piracy and armed robbery, harming maritime trade and the economies of the countries around the gulf.
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Namely, according to IMB, piracy danger continues in the Gulf of Guinea. According to its second quarterly report, 107 incidents were reported to the IMB Piracy Reporting Centre (PRC) in the first six months of 2018. In addition, all 2018 crew kidnappings have taken place in the Gulf of Guinea in six separate incidents.
Nevertheless, the report mentions that the true number of incidents in the Gulf of Guinea is believed to be significantly higher than what is reported.
For this reason, naval chiefs from 38 countries recently gathered at Victoria Island, Lagos, for the International Maritime Conference (IMC). The IMC was organised to come up with solutions to maritime security problems in GoG. The conference was called: “Enhancing an Integrated Maritime Strategy for Security of the Gulf of Guinea”.
Before the conference, a sea exercise took place in an attempt to limit maritime crimes on the GoG waters. The exercise named ‘EKU KEGBE,’ included 12 Nigerian Navy ships, alongside others from the participating countries.
Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok Ete-Ibas explained that this exercise aimed to enhance regional cooperation, which is increasing lately in order to tackle maritime crimes.
The representatives of the countries recognised that security in the Gulf of Guinea is crucial and that maritime crimes pose a significant threat to their economic growth.
