The Gulf of Guinea remains a high-risk area for piracy and armed robbery despite a year-on-year decline in global piracy, a top watchdog has warned.
The region off West Africa accounts for nearly 82% of crew kidnappings globally year-to-date, according to International Maritime Bureau’s (IMB) piracy reporting centre.
A total of 119 incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships was reported for the first nine months of 2019, versus the 156 incidents for the same period in 2018.
Overall, the 2019 incidents saw 95 vessels boarded, 10 vessels fired upon, 10 attempted attacks, and four vessels hijacked.
The IMB said that the number of crew taken hostage through the first nine months has declined from 112 in 2018 to 49 in 2019.
While the number of incidents has dropped, those involving guns and knives remain consistent
IMB
During the quarter eight crew abducted from MC Schiffahrts’ 10,600-dwt multi-purpose vessel MarMalaita (built 2002) off Cameroon were released
The men spent six weeks in captivity while the German shipowner negotiated their release with the pirate group eventually securing their release.
All eight were described as unharmed and arrived at Frankfurt Airport on 22 September to be greeted by MC Schiffarts owner Mad Dabelstein and CTO Eckhard Stieper.
“We are so happy to announce that this terrible occurrence has finally brought to a positive end and that our crew is back to their families after such a frightening time,” Dabelstein said after their release.
“We would like to thank all involved having supported and assisted us, to bringing this degrading and inhuman incident to a happy ending.”
The IMB said that while the overall number of incidents has dropped, incidents involving guns and knives remain consistent.
“There have been 24 knife-related and 35 gun-related incidents reported in 2019, compared to 25 and 37 for the first nine months of 2018,” it said.
“These statistics confirm IMB’s concerns over continued threats to the safety and security of seafarers.”
IMB director Pottengal Mukundan commented: “Although incidents are down, the Gulf of Guinea continues to be a concern for piracy and armed robbery-related activities with kidnappings of crew members increasing in both scale and frequency.
“It is important that shipmasters and owners continue to report all actual, attempted, and suspected incidents to ensure that an accurate picture of these attacks emerge and action is taken against these criminals before the incidents further escalate.”
