The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Tuesday in Accra, Ghana, said Nigeria “very much looks forward” to the proposed joint Africa Naval Exercise of the Gulf of Guinea Commission holding in Lagos on May 15, 2023.
He also identified regular meetings among the countries that make up the Gulf of Guinea Commission as a critical route towards achieving peace and security in the region.
According to a statement signed by the president’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, Buhari gave the assurance when he spoke for the last time as Nigeria’s President at the 3rd Extraordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Gulf of Guinea Commission taking place in the Ghanaian capital.
In the statement titled ‘Regular GGC summits essential for peace and security in the Gulf of Guinea region, President Buhari declares,’ he encouraged member countries to enact laws against piracy and other criminal acts as Nigeria has done.
Buhari said, “As a demonstration of Nigeria’s strong commitment towards the repositioning of the GGC into a more vibrant organisation that will effectively deliver on its mandate, the 5th Ordinary Summit of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the Gulf of Guinea Commission was hosted on October 13, 2022 in Abuja, where the Assembly adopted policy decisions towards revitalising the commission.
“Nigeria considers the effective and optimal function of the GGC as strategic to the global security interests in the Gulf region.
“These commitments include addressing issues of piracy, proliferation of small arms and light weapons, protection of marine resources as well as irregular migration to the region,” he said.
He noted that in June 2019, Nigeria’s National Assembly passed the Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences Act, 2019, which aims to prevent and suppress Piracy, Armed Robbery and any other unlawful acts against any ship lawfully operating in the Gulf Region.
“Nigeria continues to deploy significant resources towards tackling piracy in the Gulf of Guinea,” the President said.
In his welcome address, President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana reminded delegates of the challenges the commission faced, enjoining member states to promptly discharge their financial obligations to enable it to fulfil its statutory responsibilities.
