Nigeria Maintains Removal from Unsafe Waters List With $195 Million Project

Eko Hot Blog Nigeria has successfully remained off the list of nations with unsafe waters for the second consecutive time since the implementation of the Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure, commonly known as the Deep Blue project.

This achievement underscores Nigeria’s remarkable progress in improving the safety of its waters, which were once notorious for piracy and other criminal activities. Notably, there has been a substantial decline in reported pirate attacks in the region since 2022, contributing to the restoration of Nigeria’s reputation within the global shipping community.

According to the September 2023 report of the International Bargaining Forum, Nigeria is not on the list of countries designated as warlike nations that are unsafe for cargo ships and their crew.

Four countries in the Gulf of Guinea region whose waters are rated as unsafe for ships and their crew are Liberia, Ivory Coast, Angola and Namibia.

Launched in 2021 under the leadership of the then President Muhammadu Buhari, the $195 million Deep Blue Project enabled the NIMASA to acquire and deploy sophisticated maritime security assets for the effective patrol of Nigerian water up to the Gulf of Guinea region by the Nigerian Navy.

Ahmed said Nigeria has seen a significant reduction in piracy incidents in the Gulf of Guinea region, which has transcended into greater efficiency in terms of the operations of shipping companies in Nigeria and within the region.

“Deep Blue Project is simply around having the resources and the framework to ensure the number of attacks is limited and that we are able to respond effectively. This is what the Deep Blue initiative is all about, which is highly commendable,” he said.

According to him, the challenge going forward is around sustainability, but operators are confident that it is possible, especially with the creation of the Marine and Blue Economy Ministry.

“The Marine and Blue Economy Ministry is a ministry that will focus on the marine industry, and in doing so, security is a critical aspect of the marine business. Therefore, if we are going to achieve what we want to achieve as a maritime nation, we must pay serious attention to maritime security,” he added.

However, Ahmed said that removing Nigeria from the list of high-risk areas does not mean that there would not be any attacks on Nigerian waters because there is nowhere in the world that incidents of pirate attacks do not happen.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), in a recent report, also confirmed that the rate of pirate attacks on Nigerian waters has declined significantly.

It said the number of pirate attacks declined from 86 incidents in 2020 to 32 in 2021 and to only three incidents in 2022.

UNODC also attributed the drop in the number of attacks to the positive impact of Deep Blue through regular patrol of Nigerian waters by the Nigerian Navy, piracy convictions in Nigeria and Togo in July 2021 under the Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences (SPOMO) Act 2019, coupled with improved cooperation with regional counterparts.

Giving insight on some of the assets deployed under the project, Victor Choji, acting fleet commander, Western Naval Command and Commander of Deep Blue Project, said that five armoured vehicles were deployed in Port Harcourt and three in Bonny, as well as 10 more vehicles in addition to a drone unit in Bonny and some personnel.

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