Nigerian piracy threat looms

Jake Longworth, of the Eos Risk Group, provides analysis of Gulf of Guinea maritime piracy in 2016

2016 has already seen a sharp decline in incidents of maritime crime and piracy across south-east Asia. In the Indian Ocean, Somalia-based pirate gangs continue to be largely supressed by an international naval presence, BMP4 measures and the widespread use of embarked private security teams. Yet, in the Gulf of Guinea, rampant insecurity in Nigeria’s southern waterways is perpetuating extreme risks for merchant vessels and oil assets offshore, with piracy figures for 2016 looking set to easily surpass those recorded for 2015.