The International Chamber of Commerce’s International Maritime Bureau (IMB) has revealed that piracy on the world’s seas is at its lowest third-quarter level since 2006, but warns of the threat of continuing violent attacks off the East and West coasts of Africa.
The latest IMB Piracy Report which was published last weekend shows 188 piracy incidents in the first nine months of 2013, down from 233 for the same period last year. Hostage-taking has also fallen markedly, with 266 people taken hostage this year, compared with 458 in the first three quarters of 2012.
On Nigeria, the report added that attacks off Nigeria's coast have jumped by a third this year with ships passing through West Africa's Gulf of Guinea, a major commodities hub, increasingly under threat from gangs wanting to snatch cargoes and crews.
In the first nine months of 2013, IMB’s global figures show pirates hijacked 10 vessels, fired at 17, and boarded 140. A further 21 attacks were thwarted. In total 266 crew were taken hostage and 34 kidnapped. One seafarer was killed, twenty were injured, and one is reported missing.
IMB Director Pottengal Mukundan urged caution: “Although the number of attacks is down overall, the threat of attacks remains, particularly in the waters off Somalia and in the Gulf of Guinea. It is vital that ship masters continue to be vigilant as they transit these waters.”
According to the report, unlike the dangerous waters off Somalia and the Horn of Africa on the east coast of Africa, through which ships now speed with armed guards on board, many vessels have to anchor to do business off West African countries, with little protection.
This makes them a soft target for criminals and jacks up insurance costs.
"Pirates often heavily armed and violent, are targeting vessels and their crews along the (Nigerian) coast, rivers, anchorages, ports and surrounding waters. In many cases, they ransack the vessels and steal the cargo, usually gas oil," the International Maritime Bureau (IMB) reported on Thursday.
Countries on the Gulf of Guinea, including Nigeria, Ghana and Ivory Coast, are major sources of oil and cocoa and increasingly metals for world markets.
The Data from the IMB, which coordinates the fight against maritime crime and malpractice, showed Nigeria remained the main source of piracy in the region with 29 attacks on vessels recorded in the first nine months of 2013, up from 21 in the same period last year.
Narrowing down on Nigeria again, the IMB said that the nation remains the main source of piracy in the region, accounting for 29 piracy incidents, including two hijackings, 11 ships boarded, 13 vessels fired upon and three attempted attacks.
Co-ordinated patrols by Benin Republic and Nigerian authorities have helped reduce attacks in parts of the Gulf of Guinea.
There were four separate attacks around Ivory Coast this year versus three in the 2012.
In June, West and Central African nations agreed to set up a monitoring center to coordinate efforts to combat piracy.
The IMB said in the first nine months of 2013 the Gulf of Guinea accounted for all crew kidnappings worldwide, 32 of them off Nigeria, and two off Togo. In such incidents, sailors are taken ashore and usually held for ransom.
However, the report said that, despite the jump in West Africa, overall global pirate attacks fell in the period to the lowest level since 2006, helped by a slowdown in attacks by Somali groups.
The IMB said there were 188 piracy incidents in the January to September period, down from 233 last year. Hostage-taking had also dropped with 266 people taken this year, compared with 458 in the same period in 2012.
Prompted by soaring costs for shippers, including insurance and the safety of their crews, international navies have stepped up pre-emptive action against pirates, such as strikes on bases on the Somali coast.
Shipping firms are also using armed guards and measures such as better monitoring and razor wire defenses.
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