NIMASA, Navy, ICC To Ensure Sustained Security In The Gulf Of Guinea

• Collaboration Crucial For Sustainable Safety Measures, Says Jamoh

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, the Nigerian Navy and the Interregional Coordination Centre (ICC) highlighted the need for continuous collaboration with regional and international stakeholders to ensure the sustainability of security in the Gulf of Guinea.
This was the thrust of presentations at the fifth plenary of the Gulf of Guinea Maritime Collaborations Forum, Shared Awareness and De-confliction meeting with the theme: Enduring And Sustainable Security.
Director-General of NIMASA, Dr Bashir Jamoh, who noted that collaboration and co-operation remain crucial in attaining enhanced security in the Gulf of Guinea in recent times, restated NIMASA’s commitment to providing all logistics required for members of the SHADE Forum to thrive and maintain the momentum.
He said: “Two years ago, we connected virtually with our unhappy stakeholders, with challenges of piracy attaining its peak in the Gulf of Guinea between 2019 and 2020. But today, even the International Maritime Bureau (IMB), has affirmed that piracy is at a 28-year all-time low in the region.
“The SHADE must be nurtured to remain a force for good. As members, we owe a collective duty to this forum to keep its dialogue robust and guard it against slipping into complacency so as to become a toothless bulldog. It must be strengthened through cooperation, coordination, collaboration and communication. Security success can never be by solitary achievements.
“There must be cooperation between regional navies like we saw recently between Nigeria and Benin. We are all contributors to the success we are currently experiencing in the area of maritime security.”
Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), Kitack Lim, who addressed the Forum, congratulated Nigeria on the efforts at improving security in its territorial waters and the entire Gulf of Guinea domain. He challenged members of the SHADE Forum to maintain the momentum to sustain the gains of the past year.

 “Maintaining the momentum of gains made so far is the main challenge for the regional navies. To do so, we must address the root causes of piracy including the plight of coastal communities in order to reach sustainable solutions to piracy,” he stressed.
Speaking at the forum, a representative of the  Chief of Naval Staff, Chief of planning, Navy Headquarters Abuja, Real Admiral Garba, noted that the successes recorded in the Gulf of Guinea were due to the collaboration, information and data sharing among the GoG countries.
The CNS emphasized the need to sustain the momentum through institutional capacity building for maritime governance.
“There is still room for greater collaboration in the areas of Information sharing, increased presence of naval assets and strengthened legal frameworks among the GoG nations as well as international partners, which are all key to ensuring the success of the Yaounde Architecture. The safety and security of shipping in the GoG is a vital enabler in the recovery process of global economy and trade disruptions suffered due to COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
Other stakeholders present at the plenary are the Director, Interregional Coordination Centre (ICC-Yaounde), Admiral Narciso Fastudo, Co-chair, SHADE-GoG/Maritime Collaboration Forum, Rear Admiral Solomon Agada and Special Advisor to the chairs of the GoG Maritime Collaboration Forum, Simon Church.