The Director-General of the Ghana Maritime Authority, Mr Thomas Alonsi, said reports from the International Maritime Bureau showed that even though there was a decline in overall worldwide incidents of piracy in 2019, there was an alarming increase in crew kidnapping across the Gulf of Guinea.
He said the number of crews kidnapped increased by more than 50 per cent from 78 in 2018 to 121 in 2019.
Mr Alonso stated this at the opening of the fourth Executive council meeting of the Association of African Maritime Administration in Accra.
He further told the media what the current administration has done to improve the security and the rule of law as means to addressing illicit maritime activities and organized transnational crimes.
The deputy minister of Transport who also doubles as the Member of Parliament for Tema East, Hon Titus Glover who officially opened the two day meeting attended by over 40 participants drawn from across the continent encouraged leaders and participants to engage in the AU since it does not have a maritime wing together with road safety.
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Attending the two-day event are members of the AAMA from Ghana, Cameroun, Cape Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, Tanzania, The Comoros, Mozambique, South Africa, Egypt, Sudan, Uganda and Nigeria.
The meeting discussed pertinent matters affecting the maritime industry in Africa. The participants will, among other things, discuss the role the AAMA is playing in the implementation of Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy (AIMS) 2050.
