Reported piracy and armed robbery incidents for the first nine months of the year have fallen to their lowest level in 27 years, according to a top anti-piracy watchdog.
A total of 97 incidents were reported in the January to September period, the lowest level since 1994, said the International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau IMB).
In the first nine months, 85 vessels boarded, nine attempted attacks, two vessels were fired upon and one vessel was hijacked.
The IMB said 50 of the attacks took place against vessels at anchor, while seven occurred while a ship was alongside a berth. However, 40 of the attacks involved ships that were underway.
The types of ships targeted were fairly evenly distributed, with 22 against tankers, 34 bulkers, 24 containerships and seven other vessel types.
Despite this, the IMB said violence against seafarers has continued with 51 crew kidnapped, eight taken hostage, five threatened, three injured, two assaulted and one killed.
"While the reduction of reported incidents is a welcome … seafarers must remain vigilant as violence against crew remains high in many areas of the world," the IMB said.
The Gulf of Guinea, the world’s latest piracy hotspot, saw the incident numbers drop with 28 reported in the first nine months of this year, against 46 for the same period in 2020.
Most notably, Nigeria only reported four incidents versus 17 in the corresponding period in 2020 and 41 in 2018, the IMB said.
In addition, crew kidnappings in the region have dropped with only one crew member kidnapped in the third quarter compared with 31 crew members taken in five separate incidents in the same period in 2020.
"The overall reduction of piracy and armed robbery incidents in the region is a testament to enhanced maritime security and response coordination measures adopted by regional and national authorities," the IMB said.
Despite these gains, the IMB warned that the risk to crew remains high in the region and that such efforts must therefore be sustained.
Michael Howlett, director of the International Chamber of Commerce’s IMB, said he welcomed the decrease in piracy and armed robbery attacks in the Gulf of Guinea and the efforts taken by maritime authorities in the region.
"However, there needs to be sustained efforts to ensure the continued safety of seafarers as they transport essential goods throughout the region," he said.
"Coastal States must redouble their coordination and security measures to ensure that piracy and armed robbery incidents continue to decline."
Battle against piracy
TradeWinds recently reported that the UK is to deploy a naval vessel plus a contingent of Royal Marines to the Gulf of Guinea to help in the battle against piracy.
It will conduct maritime security patrols as well as support partner navies by helping them to develop key maritime skills and plans for future operations in the region.
The IMB also had praise for the Indonesian Marine Police after the former Southeast Asian piracy hotspot saw a “noticeable reduction in the number of reported incidents”.
Indonesia saw just six low-level incidents in the first nine months of this year, compared with 23 incidents during the same period in 2020.
"This is the lowest total of reported piracy and armed robbery incidents in Indonesian waters since 1993 and reflects the policies and proactive response measures implemented by the Indonesian Marine Police," the IMB said.
Singapore and Peru were highlighted as potential areas of concern, with both regions seeing a spike in reported incidents.
The Singapore Straits reported 20 incidents of armed robbery — the highest number recorded since 1991 — and up from 15 in 2020 and just one incident in 2019.
"These attacks are low-level and opportunistic in nature, but the perpetrators pose a direct threat to seafarers and vessels underway. In four incidents, crew were either threatened, assaulted, or injured," the IMB said.
The Callao Anchorage in Peru is another area that has witnessed an increase of piracy activity with 15 reported incidents in 2021 — the highest number since 1991.
"As with the Singapore Straits, these incidents are low-level thefts with knives being reported in 60% of the incidents," the IMB said.
"Attackers in the region possess the capacity to carry out violent attacks with three crew taken hostage and a further one each assaulted or threatened during the first nine months of 2021."
