We cover piracy, armed robbery at sea, IUU fishing, maritime cyber security and maritime security issues.
Author Silja Fröhlich
A vessel operated by Hamburg-based Bernhard Schulte Ship management was attacked by two speedboats in the Gulf of Guinea on Friday.
The Maersk Tema was attacked by two speedboats off the Nigerian coast, a spokesman for Peter Doehle Schiffart and Bernhard Schulte said. The crew followed emergency procedures, but the spokesman did not say whether the pirates had boarded the ship.
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Source: dw.com
By Silja Fröhlich
Maritime piracy has increased off the west coast of Africa, in the Gulf of Guinea, despite preventative measures. The issues lie on land rather than at sea. Is it time for the international community to intervene?
Nine out of 10 maritime incidents of piracy and kidnappings for ransom are reported in West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea, which stretches 5,700 kilometres (3,500 miles) from Senegal to Angola.
As the number of crew members kidnapped by pirates worldwide decreased, the number reported in the Gulf of Guinea increased from 78 in 2018 to 121 in 2019.
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Source: allafrica.com
By Evelyn Usman
The Nigerian Navy has handed over seven Sri-Lankas, 46 Nigerians and two Ghanaians who were crew members on board seven vessels that were arrested between December 3, 2019, and December 30, 2019, over alleged illegal bunkering, to the Economics and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC for prosecution.
One of the vessels arrested by operatives of the Nigerian Navy Ship, NNS Beecroft, MT ZEEBRUGGE, in which were the Sri-Lankas, sailed all the way from Morocco to Nigeria, to get the product.
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Source: vanguardngr.com
The Minister of Transport, Mr Kwaku Ofori Asiamah, has urged the Executive Council of the Association of African Maritime Administration (AAMA) to develop measures that will curb the exploitation of Africa’s fishery sector by foreign fishing companies.
He said the exploitation of Africa’s fishery sector by foreign fishing companies was depriving African governments a valuable source of revenue critical to their economic growth.
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Source: peacefmonline.com
Philip Nwosu
Residents of villages located in the Atlas Cove area of Lagos State recently heaved a sigh of relief following the eviction of some persons suspected to be pipeline vandals from the area by the military.
Over 300 spot of vandalized pipeline were discovered in the long stretch between Atlas Cove and Ilashe village, which according to officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), could be equated to travelling from Marina to Badagry.
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Source: sunnewsonline.com
At the ECR Conference on Maritime Security and the Blue Economy yesterday in the European Parliament, ECSA raises the alarm about the dire security situation in the Gulf of Guinea.
“Urgent action has to be taken by the EU right away. The new European Commission wants to be a geopolitical Commission, and this is a topic that the geopolitical Commission can deliver on,” said Martin Dorsman, ECSA’s Secretary General.
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Source: hellenicshippingnews.com
By Michael Eboh
Nigeria lost N522.2million through 28,349.72 barrels of crude oil spilled into the environment by oil and gas companies in 2019. The National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, disclosed this in a data obtained by Vanguard.
A barrel of crude oil is equal to 158.99 litres of the commodity, meaning that at 28,349.72 barrels, 4.507 million litres of crude oil was spilled into the environment in 2019, with the attendant environmental challenges.
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Source: allafrica.com
International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) says the number of ship’s crewmembers being kidnapped in the Gulf of Guinea increased by more than 50% in 2019 and this year has begun with a further escalation of violence, armed robbery and kidnaping. The crisis is deepening – pirates are bolder and taking greater number of hostages. Levels of violence are high, and deaths have occurred both during attacks and during captivity of seafarers and military personnel. This is not business as usual. For example, 20 crewmembers were kidnapped from the MT Duke on 15 December last year with one of those crewmembers dying in captivity – this not acceptable.
Over 90% of global kidnappings reported at sea took place in the Gulf of Guinea. It remains an uncomfortable fact that the vast majority of attacks are launched on shipping from within Nigerian territorial waters. We recognise that Nigeria is improving its maritime security capability through programmes such as the Deep Blue Project and ICS applauds and encourages these measures. However, now is the time to see real results in terms of action at sea and in the capture and prosecution of pirates.
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Source: en.portnews.ru
Security forces in Ivory Coast have confiscated $40 million of cocaine in the country’s coastlines. This seizure, which occurred on Tuesday, 4th of February 2020, is the biggest the country has ever recorded.
Communication Advisor, Yves Zogbo Jr, stated that “security forces launched a maritime operation to seize 411 kilograms of cocaine on the high seas.” The cargo is believed to have arrived as a single consignment from Brazil before being transferred onto three smaller boats, he said.
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Source: venturesafrica.com
The Nigerian Navy has intercepted suspected smugglers on the Cross River State waterways, with 692 bags of foreign rice and 181 drums of Premium Motor Spirit or petrol.
Five suspects arrested aboard four boats on two separate occasions are all Nigerians: Clement Okon Chali, Michael Ita Effiong, Felix Sunday, Aniefiok Effiong and Sunday Etim Bassey.
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Source: thenationonlineng.net
