The Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Bashir Jamoh, has called for a removal of War Risk Insurance on Nigerian-bound cargoes, claiming a threat to Nigeria’s maritime trade.
Although according to Dr. Jamoh, piracy in the Nigerian waters is waning, stakeholders in the industry are worried that offshore underwriting firms still insist on very high premium to be paid by those conveying cargoes to Nigeria.
War risk insurance is a type of insurance, most common in shipping and aviation, which covers damage due to acts of war, including invasion, insurrection, rebellion, and hijacking. Some policies also cover damage due to weapons of mass destruction.
Since the deployment of the deep blue project assets in February, there had been a steady decline in piracy attacks in the Nigerian waters on a monthly basis. We therefore invite the international shipping community to rethink the issue of war risk insurance on cargo bound for our ports. Nigeria has demonstrated enough commitment towards tackling maritime insecurity to avert such premium burden,
…Dr. Bashir said while speaking during the recent official flag-off of the deep blue project, a significant investment in military enforcement launched earlier in June to try to solve the piracy issues around the Gulf of Guinea.
According to nonprofit Oceans Beyond Piracy’s 2020 reports, the total cost of additional war risk area premiums incurred by Nigeria bound ships transiting the Gulf of Guinea was $55.5 million in 2020 alone, and 35% of ships transiting the area also carried additional kidnap and ransom insurance totaling $100.7 million.
While the deep blue project enters the implementation stage, NIMASA will not be complacent as it will continually evolve strategies including wide consultation with stakeholders and application of cutting edge technology in the fight against maritime insecurity,
…said NIMASA in a release.
