Nigeria, 28 others push anti-piracy, oil theft resolutions

Nigeria and 28 other countries has called for an international response to the rising cases of piracy and crude oil theft in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG) and in Africa.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the League of Nations are from Africa, European Union, Brazil, South Korea, China and United States.

Though Nigeria had on March 3 exited the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) piracy list, the country has continued to take the leading role in pushing for a more secured region.

The call was part of the resolutions reached at the end of a two-day International Maritime Conference hosted by the Nigeria Navy at Onne, Rivers State.

A 36-point communiqué issued yesterday in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, and signed by the Chief of Policy and Plans of the Nigerian Navy, Rear Admiral Saidu Garba, said 300 delegates and 900 participants from 29 countries, including heads of navies and coastguards in Africa, the European Union (EU), Brazil, South Korea, China and United States, among others, participated in the conference.

The conference had the theme: Optimising International Collaboration for Maritime Security and Sustainable Socio-Economic Development in Africa.

“At the end of the deliberations, 36 draft resolutions were adopted, including (the proposal) that African countries should identify and prosecute sponsors and collaborators in maritime crimes to serve as deterrence.

“Heads of Gulf Guinea (GoG) navies are enjoined to lobby their governments to establish special courts to prosecute cases of piracy, sea robbery and other related offences,” the communiqué said.