The first meeting of the technical committee of experts on Maritime safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea has opened in Yaoundé. It was chaired by the Secretary General of the Ministry of Defence, Saïd Kamsouloum.
The meeting was attended by heads of diplomatic missions accredited to Yaoundé and delegations of military personnel from member countries; Cameroon, Nigeria, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
The first meeting of the technical committee of experts on Maritime Safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea will be holding for 2 days from Monday, December 21 to 22, 2020.
During the opening session, representatives of the participating countries have a brief overview of the situation and the stakes of the meeting to enhancing the safety and security of the maritime waters of the gulf of Guinea.
Experts from different countries are will for two days share experiences and best practices, but also put in place a frame work for greater cooperation to fight acts of piracy on the Gulf of Guinea.
They will also examines ways of carrying out common operations to minimise the activities of pirates, armed gangs and other criminals who hinder that activities of seaports, vessels and sea routes.
Their conclusions are expected to highlight ways and means of mutualising and integrating efforts to enhance maritime domain awareness off the coast of west and Central African in a bid to ensure sustainable economic growth with the ECCASS and ECOWAS sub regions.
The current meeting is holding as a follow-up to the June 24-25, 2013 – Summit of Heads of State and Government on Maritime Safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea that held Yaounde.
The Summit decided on the creation of an Inter-regional Coordination Centre on Maritime Safety and Security for Central and West Africa headquartered in Yaoundé, Cameroon. It also adopted the Code of Conduct on the prevention and repression of acts of piracy, armed robbery against vessels, and illicit activities in the West and Central African maritime domain
