IRIA News

3 minute read

West African countries joined forces with international allies in the Grand African Navy Exercise for Maritime Operations (NEMO), to enhance the security of the Gulf of Guinea.

This year’s drills have brought together 28 nations with the shared goal of combating rising maritime crime and strengthening cooperative defense mechanisms across one of the world’s most vulnerable and strategic waters.

Stretching approximately 5,700 kilometers from Senegal in the northwest to Angola in the southwest, the Gulf of Guinea has emerged as a hotbed of illegal activities including piracy, smuggling, and unregulated fishing pose significant threats. This collaborative exercise represents a critical effort to curb these activities and ensure regional stability.

Exercise Grand African NEMO involved 55 naval units, 12 aircraft, and a large deployment of specialized maritime personnel. Participants include Angola, Benin, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, France, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Italy, Liberia, Morocco, Nigeria, Portugal, Sao-Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Spain, Togo, United Kingdom, and the United States.

The comprehensive mobilization aimed at reflecting a serious commitment to deterring maritime crime and enhancing the operational capacities of each participating nation’s navy.

Commanding officers, military staff, and specialized personnel were engaged in complex simulated scenarios that sought to test their responses to various forms of crime, notably piracy, and illegal fishing, which have been devastating regional economies and livelihoods.

SBS Commandos assigned to the Nigerian Navy landing tank ship (LST) for training in Exercise Grand African NEMO 2024.

NNS Kada recently got underway to participate in Exercise Grand African Nemo, an 8 day exercise that was launched on Monday, 4 November 2024. The exercise seeks… pic.twitter.com/H8S8GFYC4u

— Defense News Nigeria (@DefenseNigeria) November 10, 2024

“Our objectives focus on enhancing effective information-sharing, interoperability, trust building, and ensuring safety and security in the [Gulf of Guinea] and Zone F maritime space in particular,” said Ghana’s Chief of the Naval Staff, Issah Adam Yakubu. Yakubu highlighted the value of “trust and information-sharing” in building a cohesive defense system capable of overcoming the logistical and operational challenges posed by the Gulf’s vast and varied waters.

According to the International Maritime Bureau, the Gulf accounted for over 90% of global kidnappings at sea as recently as 2020. While international patrols have reduced some of these incidents in recent years, the threat remains substantial, with heavily armed pirates targeting oil tankers and fishing vessels.

Beyond piracy, illegal fishing by foreign trawlers undermines local economies, depletes fish stocks, and threatens food security. Smuggling and trafficking of weapons and narcotics are also on the rise, fueling further instability and violence. The maritime drills were designed to address these multifaceted threats by enabling personnel to practice both strategic and tactical responses.

Exercise Grand African NEMO has brought in international partners to strengthen regional forces further. Western partners like the U.S., France, Spain, and the UK, provided advanced technology, training resources, and logistical support, which are crucial in enhancing the operation’s reach and efficacy. This international commitment has been instrumental in giving regional forces the tools and confidence to tackle high-level security threats.

For these partners, the stability of the Gulf of Guinea is of global economic importance, as it sits on a major trade route, with over 1,500 commercial ships passing through each year. Disruptions here can reverberate across international supply chains. Consequently, reducing piracy and securing these waters aligns with broader economic and security goals.