The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), and Chatham House London, agreed to raise issues of Maritime Security issues in the Gulf of Guinea at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in August.
This is contained in a statement signed by the Head of Public Relations, NIMASA, Mr Edward Osagie, in Lagos on Monday.
Chatham House is a British think tank based in London.
Osagie said the decision was reached during a session between Dr Dayo Mobereola, Director General of NIMASA, and Dr Alex Vines, Director of the Africa Programme at Chatham House, accompanied by his team.
Nigeria’s Alternate Permanent Representative at the International Maritime Organisation, Bwala William, also attended the meeting.
He said the agency and Chatham House have also begun a collaboration to convene a meeting of international stakeholders from both the public and private sectors in Nigeria.
Mobereola emphasised the progress made by NIMASA in combating piracy and sea robbery in the region.
Speaking shortly after the meeting, the NIMASA DG emphasized the importance of effective international partnerships to sustain security in the Gulf of Guinea.
“We had a very fruitful discussion with the team at Chatham House. The decision to engage the UN Security Council is to ensure they are well informed about the progress made so far in terms of security in the Gulf of Guinea.
“We also need an independent analysis of the security situation in the Gulf of Guinea and how best to transform the gains in terms of enhanced security, into tangible economic benefits such as reduction in the cost of all Nigerian Bound freight and issues bothering on payment of war risk insurance premium for Nigerian bound vessels.
“The coming on board of Chatham House will serve as a catalyst in developing our Blue Economy.” Mobereola stated via his official X handle @MobereolaD.”
Mobereola said that the Chatham House has helped people, societies and governments to understand and adapt to change and has been a source of independent analysis, and trusted dialogue for one hundred years.
Piracy in the Gulf of Guinea remains of great concern to countries in West and Central Africa, with the worst affected countries being Nigeria, Togo, and Cote d’Ivoire.
In 2021, the UN commended Nigeria for playing a leading role in efforts to secure the Gulf of Guinea, saying it will continue to support the country and the region.
The Secretary General of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Kitack Lim said Nigeria’s important contributions to the fight against piracy and armed robbery in the Gulf of Guinea maritime domain, foremost among them the recent launch of the Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure, also called the Deep Blue Project.
IMO is the specialised agency of the UN responsible for regulating shipping.
NAN
