Dr Jethro Wilbert Brooks, the Acting Vice-Chancellor, Regional Maritime University (RMU), says maintaining a vibrant national economy requires attention to the maritime sector.
He said stakeholders needed to coordinate and communicate in ways that promoted maritime security and governance.
Dr Brooks Jnr said this at the closing ceremony of the six-week course for the fourth session of the Maritime Affairs and Security Training, under the European Union (EU)-RMU-Support to West Africa Integrated Maritime Security (SWAIMS) project in Accra.
The training aims to build the capacity and competencies of personnel of maritime focus agencies/institutions across the West African sub-region to combat maritime crimes in the Gulf of Guinea.
This marks the successful completion of the four-year SWAIMS Project, with this training being the fourth and final cohort, dubbed: “Maritime Affairs and Security.”
Participants were from Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Niger, and Togo and drilled through a well-designed course package.
Experts from the maritime industry, defence and security, shipping and fishing industry, academia and research institutions facilitated the training.
He said organised crimes like maritime piracy, kidnappings of crew for ransom, illegal fishing, illicit trade, and smuggling, which had been pervasive in the Gulf of Guinea, were a major obstacle to harnessing the huge resources of the maritime sector for rapid economic growth.
Dr Brooks Jnr said the Gulf of Guinea (GOG) was awash with mineral and fish resources, which provided billions of dollars to the regional economy, hence, required a safer, more secure maritime operating environment for economic growth and development.
“With this realisation the Yaoundé Architecture for Maritime Security in the GOG signed in 2013, recognises the crucial role of international cooperation at the global, regional, sub-regional, and bilateral levels in combating piracy, armed robbery at sea, illegal fishing, smuggling and other maritime crimes,” he said.
The decline in piracy was partly attributable to the increased cooperation, collaboration and coordination among GOG states, capacity building of maritime professionals, support from international partners and the various initiatives launched over the years to combat maritime crimes.
“We cannot, however, rest on our oars as we aim to further reduce the threat of piracy and other transnational organised crimes in the region because we have started to see the increase in oil theft and illegal oil bunkering in the region in 2023,” he added.
Mr Jean-Pierre Bardoul, Programme Officer, EU Delegation, said armed robbery at sea, especially kidnapping for ransom of seafarers, were steadily on the increase, and while the challenges had not gone away, the region had, however, made progress.
“During 2020-2021 a decrease was reported, which continued into 2021-2022, before slightly increasing again in the period 2022-2023 and 2023-2024. Despite this, the GOG is at a significantly lower level of piracy today compared to 2019 and 2020,” he added.
Mr Bardoul said the gains made were due to many factors, including the partnership with the EU under the SWAIMS project, of which activities with the RMU were part.
A sustainable strategy for tackling maritime challenges included providing opportunities for learning and capacity-building for maritime professionals, he noted.
Source: GNA