The statement was delivered by Ambassador Harold Agyeman, Permanent Representative of Ghana, Ambassador Mona Juul, Permanent Representative of Norway, Ambassador Ms Antje Leendertse, Permanent Representative of Germany and Ambassador Mr Gbolié Désiré Wulfran Ipo, Deputy Permanent Representative and chargé d'affaires of Côte d'Ivoire.
Ghana:
Earlier this year, Ghana and Norway led negotiations on the first Security Council resolution on maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea in ten years. As the Secretary-General’s subsequent report confirms, addressing piracy and armed robbery at sea is important for both regional economy and stability, and for the safety of seafarers.
Notably, acts of piracy and armed robberies at sea in the Gulf have halved: from 27 cases three first quarters of 2021 – to 13 this year. This progress is largely thanks to leadership by regional countries. Nigeria’s “Deep Blue” project is one such example. Many countries, including Council members Ghana and Gabon, are also implementing important new regulations and laws.
Norway:
Together with Ghana and other regional and global leaders, we will continue efforts to keep momentum going into next year’s ten-year anniversary of the Yaoundé architecture- building on existing partnerships, and in full compliance with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Today´s meeting is a call to action.
And one coalition that has responded to this call also wanted to be here today to support.
I will therefore pass the floor to the G7++ Friends of the Gulf of Guinea, and their co-chairs: Côte d’Ivoire and Germany.
Côte d'Ivoire:
In 2023, the FoGG will focus on the sustainable implementation and codification of the Yaoundé Code of Conduct and the improvement of the functionality of its institutions to ensure sustainability and provide continued support to national and regional efforts in the field of maritime security.
In addition, the G7++ members and observers continuously contribute presence of naval assets through the European Union Coordinated Maritime Presence. There has also been support or patrols of navies from Brazil, Canada, India, Japan, Morocco, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Germany:
The G7++ Friends of the Gulf of Guinea (FoGG), consisting of regional countries and international partners, are happy to respond to the Security Council’s call to action on the issue of maritime security.
Recent examples of our support include:
· Bringing together stakeholders from Central and West Africa and beyond, including the Gulf of Guinea Commission, ECOWAS and ECCAS, to foster partnerships – meetings in July in Germany and in December in Côte d’Ivoire;
· Operationalization of the Multinational Maritime Coordination Center in Cabo Verde as an important milestone;
· Structured collaboration with other international and regional formats, such as the European Union Coordinated Maritime Presences (CMP), Shared Awareness and De-confliction (SHADE) and the Atlantic Center.