Even though reports say that, attacks on ships within Nigeria’s territorial waters have peaked since January, the Nigerian Trawler Owners Association (NITOA) and the Federal Department of Fishery in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture have said that there has been a drastic reduction in pirate attacks on fishing trawlers.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that, Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC); Mr Hassan Bello told the Chief of the Naval Staff; Vice Admiral Ibok Ette-Ibas in Abuja that there have been about 88 piracy attacks on vessels in the Niger Delta since the beginning of 2019.
This is a clear contrast to the position of fishing trawler owners.
Bello had lamented that the attacks are affecting operations of shipping companies in the country. According to him, the attacks were in spite of the efforts made by shipping companies to provide security for their vessels.
But, justifying the association’s position, President of NITOA, Mr. Amire Akinbola said it has not received reports of any attacks since the beginning of this year. He added that attacks on fishing trawlers were also minimal last year.
Acknowledging that trawler owners had suffered in the hands of pirates in times past, Akinbola told our correspondent that the negative menace almost chase operators out of the fishery business.
“Yes this is correct; you see a lot of people mistake pirate attacks for sea robbery, there are not exactly the same. Piracy happens when there is violence on board a vessel with a view to cart away from that vessel, and it happens only outside the territorial waters of that country”.
“If it is within the territorial waters that is sea robbery. “What we have mostly on fishing vessel is sea robbery”.
“There are times we have pirates attacks, but in recent years, it is no.
“It is possible for the two to happen with the vessel, if for example, the vessel is attacked within the territorial and the vessel is taken as a platform to go and attack other vessels, it is piracy”, he explained further.
He explained that the relative peace being experienced in the fishery sub-sector has also increased the rate at which aquatic products from Nigeria are exported.
He disclosed that not all the fishing vessels operate from Lagos, adding that there are many operators in the sector that are out Lagos and their businesses are booming.
Also, confirming the drop in attacks on trawlers, Deputy Director at the Fishery and Agriculture department of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Mrs Bola Kupolati said that the number of attacks on fishing trawlers was very insignificant.
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