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Tag: Dr. Dakuku Peterside

  • Peterside’s Leading in a storm for launch

    Peterside’s Leading in a storm for launch

    By Anu Ajibade

    Safari Books Limited has announced October 2025 as the release date for “Leading in a Storm”, a thought-provoking and deeply relevant new work by Dr. Dakuku Peterside.

    A statement from the publishers disclosed that the book is scheduled for international and Nigerian release, with high-profile public presentations slated for Lagos, Abuja, London and Chicago.

    In an age defined by volatility and uncertainty Leading in a Storm offers a compelling guide to navigating crisis with clarity, calm and conviction.

    Dr. Peterside, drawing on decades of high-level experience in politics, corporate governance and public administration, explores what distinguishes resilient leaders from those who falter when the stakes are highest.

    READ ALSO: Fed Govt: renewable energy open to local, foreign investors

    The book presents practical strategies across eight pillars of crisis leadership, including situational intelligence, calm confidence, sense-making, strategic decision-making, among others.

    “Crisis does not build character, it reveals it,” according to Dr. Peterside, as he unpacks how true leadership is tested when order gives way to chaos.

    Through real-world case studies and hard-won insights, he offers a practical playbook for leaders in government, business, civil society and the non-profit world. Leading in a Storm is not just another leadership manual, it is a timely call to action for a new generation of leaders committed to empathy, effectiveness and ethical clarity in uncertain times.

    The book will be available in print and digital formats at major bookstores across Nigeria and globally.

  • Maritime crimes squeeze NIMASA’s revenue

    The Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dakuku Peterside, yesterday blamed high rate of crime for the revenue shortfall the agency recorded in 2018 fiscal year.

    He spoke in Abuja during 2019 budget defence session of the agency before the Senate Committee on Marine Transport.

    Peterside who made the submission in response to a question on why NIMASA’s contributions to the Consolidated Revenue Fund in 2018 reduced by N6billion noted that maritime crimes was largely responsible for the reduction.

    He explained that since monies remitted into the account on yearly basis are directly percentages of revenues saved, shortfalls in remittances were as a result of low revenues largely caused by maritime crime or piracy on high sea.

    He said: “Our own problem here is more of maritime crime and not piracy which is committed on high seas, but within the sector, Nigeria is largely seen as headquarters of piracy in the world.”

    The agency’s remittance into the consolidated revenue fund in 2017 was N22billion while that of 2018 was N16billion, giving a shortfall of N6billion.

    As a way out, the NIMASA chief appealed to the committee to facilitate the process of the Senate giving concurrence to the Maritime Security Bill already passed by the House of Representatives.

    He said: “We need adequate security on our water ways, the very reason why the Anti- Piracy law already passed by the House of Representatives is urgently needed.”

     

  • Peterside hails Appeal Court over dispute with NLNG

    Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Director-General Dr. Dakuku Peterside has hailed the Appeal Court judgement in the case between the agency and the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited over levies payable to the maritime regulator.

    Peterside said the verdict has reaffirmed confidence in the judiciary.

    The Court of Appeal in Lagos on Friday set aside an earlier judgment of the Federal High Court, which had exempted NLNG from the levies, on the grounds that NIMASA was not given fair hearing at the lower court. Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba, who delivered the judgment, ordered that the case be sent back to the high court for fresh trial under a different judge.

    Peterside, in a statement by the NIMASA Corporate Communications Department, said NIMASA remained law-abiding and would keep working closely with the judiciary in matters that need clarity and interpretation.

    He said: “This judgment has further shown that the judiciary is unbiased and remains a beacon of hope for Nigerians. On our part as a responsible government agency, we will continue to work closely with the judiciary and other stakeholders to ensure that we realise our mandate of creating a robust maritime sector in line with best global practices.

    “NIMASA and NLNG are neither foes nor competitors. We are corporate cousins working together for the common good of our great country. Judgments like this only serve to strengthen our institutions and ensure greater bonding.”

    The agency had in 2010 commenced an action against NLNG, wherein it sought for an interpretation of relevant provisions of the Nigerian LNG (Fiscal Incentives, Guarantees and Assurances) Act, CAP N87, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990, and the NIMASA Act of 2007. In January 2013, the action by NIMASA was withdrawn in a bid to amicably settle the dispute out of court.

    In May 2013, NIMASA requested NLNG to pay all statutory Levies accruable to the agency, including the three per cent levy on gross freight on inbound and outbound international cargo, two per cent Cabotage levy and Sea Protection levy.

    It stated that the NLNG was not exempted from payments of statutory levies after its tax holiday ended many years ago. Following the continued disregard of the provisions of the NIMASA Act and other relevant laws by the NLNG, their vessels were detained for non-compliance.

    Upon agreement between both parties, on July 12, 2013 before Justice Idris Mohammed of a Federal High Court in Lagos, NLNG agreed to pay outstanding levies attributable to the Free on Board (FOB) and cabotage vessels.

    The NLNG also agreed to keep paying all applicable levies in line with the NIMASA mandate. The court order also gave NIMASA liberty to collect levies directly from Free on Board (FOB) and cabotage vessels without recourse to NLNG.

    The agency received a pre-action Notice on June 18, 2013 from counsel to NLNG, giving a 30 days’ notice of their intention to begin legal action in accordance with Sections 53(2) of the NIMASA Act. Hearing of the substantive issue continues after which the Federal High Court ruled in favour of NLNG.

    Dissatisfied with the judgment of the Federal High Court by Justice M. B. Idris delivered in the case between NIMASA and NLNG, the agency appealed the matter in October 2017.

    NIMASA’s action, said its statement, is in line with its enabling law, the NIMASA Act 2007.

  • Peterside: APC not planning mayhem in Rivers

    Deputy leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State Dr. Dakuku Peterside has said members of the party were not planning to unleash mayhem in the state.

    He was reacting to allegations by Director-General of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Campaign Council, Desmond Akwawor, that APC was planning to cause mayhem and bloodbath during the elections.

    According to him, Akwawor had elevated lies to an act.

    Peterside, who spoke yesterday at the Port Harcourt International Airport, insisted that all allegations were what the PDP leaders planned to do. They were only crying to attract cheap sympathy, he added.

    He accused Governor Nyesom Wike of being the agent provocateur and harbinger of violenc.

    Peterside, who is the Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), blasted the PDP campaign council for involving his home local government area, Opobo/Nkoro, in the allegation of using money to induce electoral officials.

    He said: “I am proud to come from Opobo/Nkoro, and as a party stalwart, there was no time such scenario happened. We are a peace-loving people, and we will never be part of such plot.”

    Peterside also denied accusations that the APC was working with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Army and other security agencies, to subvert the people’s will.

    He said: “Anytime you see Wike and his party shouting, just know they have tried unsuccessfully to bribe security agents. This is the same old trick of Wike, but his threats will fail this time.

    “Before, during and after the 2015 elections, Rivers people knew what Wike did with Police Commissioner Mbu Joseph Mbu. APC leaders were arrested with reckless abandon and locked up till after the elections. So far, no such thing has hapened.

    “Like an uninvited gatecrasher, Wike has been working with his agents to frustrate APC’s genuine quest to be on the ballot in Rivers State.”

    The NIMASA DG called on security agents to remain alert and thwart every PDP effort to instigate violence and blame the APC.

    He dismissed PDP’s allegation that the Minister for Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, held a meeting with some people to rig the election. “Rivers people know the persons who are violent; the people know those who sponsored the thugs arrested in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni council last Friday. Rivers people know those who are desperate for power and will do anything to get it. Rivers people know their history.”

  • Peterside kicks as Wike’s man raises allegations

    The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State during the 2015 election, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, has accused Governor Nyesom Wike of being economical with the truth.

    Peterside, who is also the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), during his 48th birthday celebration in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital on December 31 last year, accused Wike of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of poor performance.

    The NIMASA chief said during his birthday celebration: “Nyesom Wike is a terribly bad governor. If we do not do anything, we will be in the wilderness for another four years. There is no guarantee that after the four years of being in the wilderness, that we will still not be roaming about in the wilderness. God forbid. So, I want to plead with my friends in the APC in Rivers State, please, let us allow peace to reign. No sacrifice is too great to make.”

    Wike, in his reaction through his Special Assistant on Electronic Media, Simeon Nwakaudu, on Wednesday, described Peterside’s remarks as the sad lamentation of a bruised houseboy.

    Nwakaudu said: “If not for the senseless nature of the APC brand of politics, the 2015 defeated Rivers State APC governorship candidate would  have taken wine to Governor Wike for connecting his Opobo Kingdom to the rest of Rivers State via the Ogoni-Andoni-Opobo-Nkoro Unity Road.

    “Instead, Dakuku Peterside resumed his forgotten cries of gubernatorial deprivation, just to please his Oga, the failed Minister for Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.

    “Peterside played a major role in the total failure of his Oga, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi. As Works Commissioner, Peterside had no visible achievement anywhere in Rivers State. He could not even complete the road to his hometown.

    “Even at NIMASA, Peterside has failed to deliver. Instead, funds have been diverted and the House of Representatives has indicted him for mass fraud in the parastatal. Peterside has not attracted any form of development to Rivers State since he was compensated by President Muhammadu Buhari for joining Amaechi to betray the entire Southsouth by using Rivers funds to finance the APC national campaign.”

    The media aide also stated that Rivers people were happy with Wike and they would re-elect him in March this year.

    Peterside, through his media team, yesterday in an online statement, declared that Wike and Nwakaudu needed help, in view of their careless and senseless remarks.

    The media team of the NIMASA chief said: “If Nwakaudu is close to average in his intellect and thought process, he would have known that not even his master, Wike, has the credentials to question the depth, intelligence, posture and being of Dr. Peterside, who is a symbol of integrity and performance in public service. As at today, Dr. Peterside speaks for Africa, as far as maritime activities are concerned.

    “In his latest ranting, Nwakaudu chose to focus on statements made by Dr. Peterside during his birthday celebration, where he spoke truth to Wike to rise above being petty, visionless, deceitful and work towards a peaceful and prosperous Rivers State.

    “Dr. Peterside spoke the minds of Rivers people, including high-ranking members of Wike’s government, who are visibly tired of an administration that is owing pensioners for the past three years, not promoted a single civil servant since 2015, that has abandoned Rivers students abroad, that awards contracts against all known procurement laws of the state, that has some of the highest unemployment figures in the country, among others. Wike, he said, represents everything but transparency and accountability.

    “It is on record that no commissioner in Wike’s government knows the value of any project under their respective ministries, just as no one has seen the state’s budget since 2016. Contracts are awarded by the fiat of the governor, an action that has stalled many initiatives and rendered cabinet members as mere appendages. The Rivers governor has absolutely no programme to address job creation in the state. These were the issues for which Wike had no response and he cannot have a response.”

    Peterside also stated that a proof of Wike’s rejection by PDP members in Rivers state and beyond was the abysmal failure of his preferred presidential aspirant, Aminu Tambuwal, the governor of Sokoto State, during the party’s convention in his backyard (Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt).

    He declared that Wike and Nwakaudu’s generation could never rise to the stature of Amaechi, a former Rivers governor and Transportation Minister, whom he said performed excellently while at the helm of affairs in the Niger Delta state.

    The former member of the House of Representatives (Peterside) also said Rivers people knew that his tenure as Commissioner for Works in Amaechi’s administration remained unparalleled and also receiving accolades from President Buhari, other world leaders and international organisations, among others, for his impressive performance in NIMASA.

  • ‘Nigeria to rake in over $400m from ship chandling’

    The Nigeria Maritime Administration Safety Agency (NIMASA) has put in place measures that will ensure the country rakes in over $400 million yearly from ship chandling business, The Nation has learnt.

    Its Director-General Dr Dakuku Peterside, it was gathered has developed a robust initiative that will end foreign domination of the business and create jobs for many Nigerians in ship chandling.

    A senior official of the Federal Ministry of Finance (FMoF), who craved anonymity told The Nation, that Peterside was unhappy that foreigners and non-professional chandlers were responsible for the supply of essential commodities to ships, including  Floating Production Storage Offshore Vessels (FPSOVs), oil rigs, platforms, supply boats and LNG vessels.

    He said the illegal practice had been causing capital flight.

    Many foreigners and non-professionals have taken over ship chandling industry due to lack of regulation by agencies saddled with the responsibility of supervising the operators.

    The official alleged that some of those currently in the business obtained their licences from the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS).

    Peterside, the official said, is making the current move to ensure that there is updated record of authentic professionals in the business.

    “Lack of regulation of the profession was partly responsible for the criminal activities on the nation’s territorial waters and that is why NIMASA is taking the bold move to end the cycle of criminalities in our waters and seas.”

    He described the business as a most lucrative one in the maritime sector. Ship chandling, a business established in Nigeria through an Act in 1958, is made up of retail dealers who specialise in the supply of equipment and goods for ships, known as ships’ stores.

    Items that could be found in a chandlery may include: rosin, turpentine, tar, pitch (resin), linseed oil, whale oil, tallow, lard, varnish, twine, rope and cordage, hemp, oakum and tools (hatchet, axe, hammer, chisel, planes, lantern, nail, spike, boat hook, caulking iron, hand pump, (marlinspike).

    Others are brooms, mops, galley supplies, leather goods, and paper. Items that could be supplied by the modern day chandlers range from foodstuff, drinks, oil, engine oil, water,  spares to materials that the Captain of the ship may require.

    Former President,Nigeria Licensed Customs Clearing Agents (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittu, said though the Local Content Act was meant to address such issues, the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board was yet to understand the dynamics of the local content in ship chandelling.

    He said the country loses billions of naira yearly due to the low level of activities in the ship chandelling sub-sector. He urged Peteride and the agency’s Board to co-ordinate the statues guiding ship chandelling to harness it to create jobs for the youth and boost the economy. He pointed out that ship chandelling needs funds to meet the demands of the crew.

    For instance, he said a ship of 5,000 Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT), would require about $50,000 monthly to take foods, pharmaceuticals, oil, lubricants and other things for it to go to sea and return to the port.

    The ANLCA chief said the association was worried that the legislation guiding ship chandelling had been in comatose, a situation, which allowed the profession to stagnate, adding that the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA), Section 24, which regulates ship chandelling, has not been reviewed since 1968 to reflect the new business trend. Shittu said the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has the power to enforce as well as carry out the requisite training to understand the dynamics of how this aspect of the maritime business is run.

    He said ship chandelling is one of the oldest maritime professions the country needs to harness to protect local chandlers and end foreign domination.

    Shittu said the continuous refusal of foreign ship operators to make use of indigenous chandlers contravenes the Local Content Act aimed at growing indigenous firms and creating jobs.

    “NIMASA and the Federal Government must do something about the business. The country must use all the resources we have to provide jobs for our people. Other countries are using ship chandel-ling to empower their youths and there is nothing wrong if we also tap into it,” Shittu said.

    But an importer, Mr Shola Adedayo, alleged that port operators were charging indigenous chandlers heavily, collecting about 20 per cent of the total cost of the goods to be supplied. “They collect the money before they allow the goods to pass through their terminals for supply to the crew inside ships,” he said. Ship chandelling is regulated by an international body known as the International Ship Suppliers Association (ISSA), formed in 1955.

     

  • ‘Nigeria eyes largest supplier of seafarers in Africa’

    Nigeria is set to become the largest supplier of seafarers in the West and Central Africa; it was learnt in Egypt Wednesday.

    The Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside said, the country, in the next two years, would become one of the greatest contributors of seafarers to domestic and international fleet.

    Addressing over 2000 delegates and stakeholders at the on-going African Maritime Administrations (AAMA) Conference in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, said the President Muhammadu Buhari administration through NIMASA is working tirelessly to ensure that Nigeria becomes one of the major supplier of seafarers globally.

    The Director General said that several billion of naira have been spent by the Federal Government through the Ministry of Transportation and NIMASA, in the training of Nigerian seafarers under the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP).

    Peterside, who is also the current Chairman of AAMA said, NIMASA has equally sponsored the training of many young Nigerians so that foreign seafarers will stop dominating African and Nigerian territorial waters.

    The NSDP initiative, he said, was conceived by the agency to bridge the gap observed in the dearth of seafarers in the country and to end foreign domination.

    “Over the past years, we can see that there is a growing trend on the global supply of seafarers, which consists of both Officers and Ratings available for internationally trading merchant fleet,” he said.

    Many young Nigerians, Peterside said, have been trained in various fields of maritime studies in Maritime Institutions in the United Kingdom, Egypt, Romania, India and the Philippines.

    A senior of NIMASA at the conference who craved anonymity told The Nation that the agency has embarked on a laudable initiative that will ensure that there is one Nigerian seafarer for every 5 complements on board a vessel at any time in Africa.

    Given the country’s vast coast line, Nigerians, Peterside said, have natural maritime instincts that place them at an advantage over many other nationalities in the region.

    Foreign and local shipowners, he said, would prefer Nigerian seafarers for unquestionable important qualities like dedication and discipline, industry, flexibility, loyalty, English language fluency, adaptability, positive work attitude, law-abiding, and problem-solving capability.

    To boost their competitiveness, many Nigerian seafarers, the Chairman of AAMA said,  have been placed by NIMASA onboard ocean going vessels for their mandatory sea time, as facilitated by the agency with institutions in Egypt, United Kingdom and Turkey.

    NIMASA, Peterside said, is currently addressing the basic seafarers’ issues, among others, include (a) illegal recruitment; (b) illegal dismissal; (c) non-payment or underpayment of salaries and wages; (d) disability benefits due to injury or illness and (e) death benefits.

    Investigation revealed that Philippine and China top the largest numbers of seafarers based on the estimates of national distributions to the global supply of seafarers.

    Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) data showed that there are 367,166 Filipino seafarers with POEA approved contract deployed in 2013. In 2014, the deployed seafarers brought in US $5,575,722,000 as dollar remittances. The sea based sector’s remittance comprise at least 22% of the total dollar remittances of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).

  • Buhari’ll make Nigerian port a hub in Africa – Peterside

    President Muhammadu Buhari has a bold and robust vision, national determination, and assiduous plans to make the Nigerian ports, the hub of maritime activities in the West and Central Africa.

    This was disclosed Tuesday, by the Director General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside at the on-going Association of African Maritime Administrations Conference, holding at Sharma El Sheikh, Egypt.

    Addressing over 2000 delegates and other stakeholders at the conference, the NIMASA helmsman

    said the geographical location of Nigeria  trade lines is favourable and its transformation to a regional maritime hub, he said, cannot be by chance but by having a robust plan, identify its strength and weakness through the efforts of the Federal Government to take financial risk and invest in infrastructure and technological development.

    The Buhari administration, he said, has a long-term, strategic port planning system that will ensure in the next two years that the nation’s sea ports provide adequate capacity to meet the demands of key shipping lines and their alliance partners in sizeable blocks of volume.

    This, he said, means the ability of the Nigeria to develop deep sea ports, berth all types of ocean going vessels and conduct cargo operations timely and efficiently.

    Africa, he said, needs leaders like President Buhari that have strategic vision and viable courage to make bold decisions that will enable the Nigerian sea ports and other ports in Africa to stay ready for the future, be a pacesetter, reap first-mover advantages, and thrive in a dynamic and competitive global maritime business.

    Nigeria’s strategic vision for its ports, he said, are being built on the 3 Cs of Connectivity, Capacity, and Competitiveness

    African leaders, he said, need to emulate Singapore in taking the right decision and make the necessary investment to develop port infrastructure and technology to boost efficiency and economy.

    “Today, we are celebrating Singapore based on the Vision of its leaders. And I am also happy to inform you that the Federal Government of Nigeria under President Muhammadu Buhari is doing everything position to make the Nigerian ports the hub of maritime activities in the West and Central Africa.

    The Federal Government, through NIMASA, Dr Peterside said, is emulating Singapore and other maritime nations of the world in terms of short, medium and long term planning that will assist the Nigerian ports to compete favourably with other ports across the globe and urged other African countries to emulate them.

    The maritime time sector forecast released by NIMASA recently and the training of over 2500 seafarers by the agency, he said, were part of the efforts to make the Nigerian ports competitive.

    He urged African maritime administrators to identify areas where they have comparative advantage, their weaknesses and the opportunities they have to reduce poverty and the high level of unemployment ravaging the content.

    “Be ready to take risk, make necessary investment and grow human capacity.”

    He said, there was need for maritime administrators across the continent to come up with beautiful ideas so that people can invest in their programmes the way the World Bank and other financial institutions did for Singapore in 1972.

    Paucity of fund, according to him, cannot, and must not be allowed to delay the growth of the maritime sector in the continent of Africa.

    Nigeria and other African countries, he said, must emulate continue to emulate developed countries by investing in technology to bringing innovation and efficiency to our ports.

    In allaying the fear of other countries in Africa, he said,: “We are not in competition with ourselves, we are not in competition with our neighbouring ports, we are part of the global community, we in competition with the best in the world,” he said.

    He urged port administrators in Africa to leverage on technology to make the ports attractive for business.

    Representatives of over 35 countries from Africa and beyond and other stakeholders are attending the event.

     

  • Illegal fishing: Peterside vows to protect waterways

    The Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside, has vowed to protect the nation’s territorial waters against pollution and illegal fishing.

    Findings revealed that the rate of polluting the territorial waters, illegal fishing and dumping of hazardous wastes has reduced drastically, based on the new measures put in place by the NIMASA helmsman.

    A member of the Fishery Society of Nigeria (FISON), Alfred Adegoroye, said NIMASA was  working with foreign partners to develop the capacity in tackling the crisis caused by pollution, hazardous waste dumping and illegal fishing

    Adegoroye said the dumping of toxic waste in the maritime domain and the increasing crimes on the coastline were attracting the required attention and commitment on the side of the Federal Government and NIMASA in providing capability and cooperation with foreign partners to build the nation’s maritime capability.

    Adegoroye pointed out that NIMASA and other security experts around the Horn of Africa have developed theories over the increasing hazardous wastes dumping and piracy

    He said Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand had set the stage for cooperation between states, both in information exchange and mobilisation of resources.

    Another member of the group, Mrs Lola Bilesanmi, observed that the insecurity in Africa’s waterways had forced insurers to hike rates for ships passing through the region.

    Specifically, coastal and inland states had seen their vital trade links threatened by pirates, a situation that led to rising costs that their populations must bear.

    “As at now, there are no clear answers as to the best ways to ensure maritime security, nor are there clear answers as to what percentage of resources nations should allocate to maritime security to best facilitate the goal of furthering development, but we need to give Kudos to NIMASA for its current initiatives,’’ she said.

    Since piracy is not the only threat to maritime security, another member, Mr Sesan Olanipekun, advised the government to adopt best practices that can be implemented to boost the current efforts of NIMASA.

  • Dakuku: we have zero tolerance for piracy in Gulf of Guinea

    Dakuku: we have zero tolerance for piracy in Gulf of Guinea

    Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Director-General Dr. Dakuku Peterside has said teh country has zero tolerance for piracy in the Gulf of Guinea.

    Peterside spoke while delivering a paper at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, London.

    The lecture was titled; “The problem of maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea is real”.

    Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi disclosed that the Federal Government had approved an Integrated National Security Strategy (INSS) for the maritime sector. The strategy, which will be implemented in collaboration with other countries in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG), is aimed to stem the tide of insecurity on the region’s territorial waterways.

    Amaechi’s paper is titled; “Nigeria’s role in responding to the causes and consequences of maritime insecurity”. He said NIMASA was already implementing a comprehensive maritime strategy in collaboration with other partners  to enhance the fight against piracy attacks in the region.

    Peterside added that the agency through collaboration with other relevant government bodies was leaving no stone unturned in ensuring zero tolerance to all forms of piracy and illegalities on the nation’s territorial waterways and the  Gulf of Guinea.

    He also highlighted four strategic pillars the agency has adopted for tackling the issue of piracy tagged; “Total Spectrum Maritime Strategy” namely situational awareness, law enforcement, response capability and regional cooperation all aimed at achieving a virile and robust maritime sector.

    Dr. Peterside, who is the Chairman of the Association of African Maritime Administrations (AAMA), also assured the international community that NIMASA will continue to collaborate with other relevant bodies both locally and internationally in order to realise its vision of a prosperous maritime sector in Nigeria and the west and central Africa sub-region.

    The NIMASA DG noted that improved profiling and information sharing on maritime criminality and illegality, enhanced maritime domain awareness and surface to air patrol capabilities, functional legal framework, integration of national inter-agency efforts, youth empowerment programmes amongst others are factors that can help bring solutions to the issues surrounding insecurity in the maritime space.