IMO urges for further action to tackle Gulf of Guinea piracy

In a resolution on recommended action to address piracy and armed robbery in the Gulf of Guinea adopted by the Maritime Safety Committee (MSC), IMO calls on Member States, national authorities, the United Nations and other relevant organizations to consider strengthening law enforcement to arrest and prosecute pirates in relevant jurisdictions, in accordance with international law and national legal frameworks.

At the same time, coastal States are urged to harmonize criminal penalties.

In light of the situation, IMO also calls for improved governance of available protection solutions, such as security escort vessels for assisting other vessels, in accordance with international law, and with due respect for the sovereignty, sovereign rights and territorial integrity of coastal States.

Member States, national authorities, the United Nations and other relevant organizations are urged to support and encourage wider participation in the Gulf of Guinea Maritime Collaboration Forum (GoG-MCF/SHADE GoG) as well as other platforms, such as the G7++ Friends of the Gulf of Guinea (G7++FoGG).

…IMO stated,

As further informed, this will help improve maritime security and safety in the region and facilitate the strengthening of cooperation mechanisms for regional maritime patrol and protection.

The resolution highlights the need for greater collaboration with all critical stakeholders, including information-sharing on maritime criminality and illegality, use of maritime domain awareness such as MDAT-GoG (Maritime Domain Awareness for Trade for the Gulf of Guinea) and use of surface and/or air patrol capabilities.

[smlsubform prepend=”GET THE SAFETY4SEA IN YOUR INBOX!” showname=false emailtxt=”” emailholder=”Enter your email address” showsubmit=true submittxt=”Submit” jsthanks=false thankyou=”Thank you for subscribing to our mailing list”]

What is more, the resolution requests IMO’s Secretary-General to make full use of technical cooperation funds to support capacity-building in the region to tackle piracy and armed robbery and to look at creating a common platform for information sharing between existing mechanisms (these include MDAT-GoG, the NIMASA C4i-Centre, Regional Reporting Centres, the ICC IMB Piracy reporting centre and relevant responding law enforcement entities).

Member States, international organizations and relevant stakeholders are urged to contribute financially the IMO West and Central Africa Maritime Security Trust Fund.

The resolution welcomes other continuous efforts made in the region to curb piracy and armed robbery against ships in the Gulf of Guinea, including drafting of anti-piracy laws, the Nigerian Government’s Deep Blue project, the Interregional Coordination Centre (ICC Yaoundé) and the ongoing establishment of the Yaoundé Architecture Regional Integration System (YARIS).

For the record, IMO and the shipping industry have supported efforts to tackle piracy and armed robbery against ships and the kidnapping of seafarers and/or passengers in the Gulf of Guinea, including through providing technical assistance to Member States to implement of maritime security measures.

Based on reports submitted to IMO, in 2020, the number of incidents taking place in the Gulf of Guinea (West Africa) increased to 90 (up by 20 compared to 2019), with a total of 112 crew members reported as kidnapped/missing.

This represented a significant proportion of the total 226 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships occurred or attempted in 2020 globally. To date, in 2021, 23 incidents have been reported in the West Africa region.

Speaking of Gulf of Guinea piracy incidents, 99 maritime companies, organisations and flag states, recently signed the Gulf of Guinea Declaration on Suppression of Piracy, in an effort to put an end in armed robberies and attacks within the area.