29 November 2017, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, has disclosed that piracy attack in the Gulf of Guinea has reduced tremendously.
According to him, current statistics also show that attacks on oil and gas installations onshore and offshore reduced from 36 in the first half of this year.
Peterside made the disclosure at the G7 high-level meeting on maritime security in Rome, Italy, where he spoke of the maritime security architecture in the region.
The NIMASA boss, who is also the chairman of the Association of African Maritime Administration, AAMA, stated that the maritime security architecture in the Gulf of Guinea had political, strategic, regional, multinational and national components which are aimed at enhancing security in the region.
The strategic operational offices to coordinate the implementation of the maritime security architecture in the region are located in Abuja, Nigeria; Libreville in Gabon, Luanda, Angola; Pointe Noire, Congo and Yaoundé, Cameroun.
Peterside used the opportunity of the meeting to urge leaders of countries in the Gulf of Guinea to effectively communicate developments in the region to international partners and also begin to put in place measures that translate to visible results.
He said some of the efforts being put in place by the NIMASA to curb piracy activities in Nigeria includes sponsoring Anti-Piracy Bill in the Nigerian National Assembly to enhance the legal framework to fight piracy, establishment of a NIMASA-Navy Maritime Guard Command Unit to enhance implementation of some of the provisions of UNCLOS Law, capacity building programme to enhance human and infrastructural capacity, amongst others.
“Let me also inform you that as part of our determination to stamp out piracy and all forms of criminal activities, NIMASA is pushing for early passage of an anti-piracy law; the draft bill is before the Federal Executive Council ready to be sent to the National Assembly”, he said.
He hinted that the Federal Government of Nigeria recently approved heavy investment in maritime security which includes establishment of a command and control centre and acquisition of special mission aircraft, special mission patrol vessels and special mission helicopters.