B Stephen Ubanna
Multinational and Local Companies fishing in Nigerian waters can now heave a sigh of relief over the safety of their vessels from Pirates attack. This is because Bashir Jamoh, led Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, and the Federal Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, FDFA, have begun discussion to ensure the Safety of fishing vessels and their operators in Nigeria.
. At a recent one day strategic meeting in Lagos, the nation’s Commercial nerve centre, which was said to have been held under the auspices of the Maritime Regulatory agency External Relations and Technical Cooperation Programme, aimed at seeking at seeking areas of Collaboration between the two agencies for the benefit of the nation’s fishing industry , they were said to have discussed issues relating ‘’to Safety of fishing vessels,, illegal , unreported and unregulated ,IUU, fishing and other broader crimes that usually occur during fishing in Nigerian waters and the Gulf of Guinea.
Last March the Nigerian army had freed the Asian country of China fishing boat from their Pirates hijakers. The Chinese fishing boat which was registered in the Central African country of Gabon, was said to have been jijacked using high-speed off the Gabonese port of Gentil on February 7, 2021. Six Chinese nationals, three Indonesians, a Gabonese and four Nigerians , were said to have been kidnapped by the Pirates.
However, the Nigerian Army had issued a Statement that the Gabonese flagged Chinese fishing vessel Crew members were freed by the Pirates after one month in their captivity with the payment of the North American country of the United States, US, $300,000.
Also in June, 2020, NIMASA, officials had arrested a Chinese fishing vessel, Hailufeng 11 , for turning off its Automated Identification System , AIS, in order to fish illegally in Nigerian waters. Note that the AIS, is designed to be capable of giving out information about the ship to other ships and Coastal Authorities automatically for security monitoring. Jamoh the NIMASA, Director General, had said that the accosted Chinese fishing vessel had been of interest to the agency for some time before it was finally arrested for turning off its AIS, which the Crew had claimed was faulty.
The fishing vessel was said to have been hijacked by Pirates on Saturday, May 14, 2020, in the Coted’Ivoire exclusive Economic zone with 18 Crew members on board, eight Chinese, seven Ivorians and three Ghanaians.
Informed sources told The Value News that through the cooperation among the different West African countries and maritime Institutions, the vessel was tracked and the Nigerian Navy was able to interdict it some 140 nautical miles south of Lagos Fairway Buoy in May 16, 2020.
The vessel was said to have safely been escorted to Lagos with the 18 Crew members rescued but the 10 Pirates that had hijacked the vessel were arrested. The Chinese Company that had owned the fishing vssel was said to have paid a fine of N3 million for switching off its AIS, as a deterrence to other Companies fishing illegally in Nigerian waters.
Many believe that with the synergy between NIMASA AND FDFA, it would be very difficult for Pirates to succeed in attacking fishing vessels in Nigerian waters, let alone for ‘’illegal, unreported and unregulated , fishing vessels to fish in Nigerian waters and escape.
Eddward Osagie, an Assistant Director, in the Agency, Public Relations Department, had said that Isichei Osambgbi , a Director, and Head of External Relations and Technical Duties had represented Jamoh, the agency boss at the strategic meeting with FDFA. The NIMASA Director, may have spoken the mind of the Director General when he noted that ‘’with the synergy between the two government agencies, there should be adequate sharing of information between FDFA, which has the mandate to license fishing vessels and NIMAASA, which is responsible for the Registration and Survey of the vessels in Nigerian waters to ensure that unseaworthy vessels were not licensed.
oSambi, who had the mandate of the Director General to speak on his behalf at the meeting with FDFA, had said that ‘’it is important that NIMASA and FDFA, agree to continuously Collaborate on modalities for Registration, Survey and Licensing of fishing vessels to ensure that all safety standards are met before they could be allowed to operate in Nigerian waters’’. He believes that with the Collaboration, ‘’it would drastically reduce the incidents of Pirates attack of fishing vessels in Nigerian waters.
Recall that Jamoh on assumption of duties in March 2020, had set a three point agenda in the agency: maritime safety, maritime security and maritime development. He has moved swiftly for the actualization of maritime security in Nigerian waters and the Gulf of Guinea with the delivery of the $195 million maritime securityassets, comprising of 16 Armoured vessels for Patrol of the coastal areas, 17 Boat interceptors, two Special Mission Vessels, SMV, Two Special Mission aircrafts, , SMA, for Search and Rescue, S&R, Operations, three Special Mission Helicopters and four unmanned Aerial vehicles as many Pirates operating in Nigerian waters were forced to relocate to Ghana, Gabon and other countries in the West and Central African sub-regions.
This confirms what the NIMASA boss, had said on taking delivery of the maritime security assets from HLS, security Systems and Technologies Limited, an Israeli, firm, that ‘’the days of the Pirates and sea thieves’’ in Nigerian maritime domain are numbered’’ . He has every reason to say so. This is because HLS Systems and Technologies Limited, the Israeli firm that had supplied the maritime security assets, the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Air Force, have been involved in training the personnel that would operate the security assets both on land, sea and air.
The Israeli firm, was said to have trained 600 officers Locally to compliment the efforts of the officers drawn from the military, Department of State Security, DSS, Nigerian Police Force, NPF, and The Nigerian Civil Defence Commission, NCDC, for the Integrated National Security and Water Ways Protection Infrastructure, popular ,Deep Blue Project.
In his remarks at the meeting with NIMASA, officials, Paul Opuama, Head, Monitoring , Control and Surveillance , of FDFA, who could not hide his feelings had said that the meeting has ‘’provided a very useful opportunity to them not only to clear some grey operational areas but to foster closer working relationship with the agency in order ‘’ to improve safety of Fishing vessels’’.
