Piracy, Armed Robbery in Gulf of Guinea Has Reduced, Says ECOWAS President

Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr Omar Touray, yesterday, said the Gulf of Guinea, has continued to witness a downward trend in piracy and armed robbery attacks over the year.

He said this was achieved through the efforts of the Inter-regional Coordination Centre, ICC, insisting that its achievements in maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea was quite commendable.

Touray made this known at the 4th Annual Meeting of the Heads of Institution (HOI) of the ICC, at the ECOWAS Commission Headquarters in Abuja.
ICC was created in September 2014 by ECOWAS, the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) and the Gulf of Guinea Commission (GGC) with the mission of serving as the Coordination Centre on maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea following the 2013 Yaoundé Summit of ECOWAS, ECCAS and GGC Heads of State and Government.

Touray, in his address, said: “Since the Political Declaration of our Heads of State, substantial progress has been made in our maritime community.
“This included the adoption of National Maritime Strategies and the deployment of critical maritime infrastructure that has improved maritime situational awareness.

“With regards to our MoU, some progress has been achieved by the governing body on inter-institutional coordination.
“The Coordination Centre receives funding, and its annual Work Plan and Budget are approved, including the operations of Maritime Operational Centres.”
Touray added that the importance ICC to global maritime security and safety could not be wished away, noting that it  attracted the interest of many development partners.

He listed them to include the G77++ Friends of the Gulf of Guinea, the European Union, the German Federal Government and the Chinese Government for their different support and assistance.