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BY PHILIP NWOSU
The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo said that the Nigerian Navy remain committed in eradicating criminality within the country’s maritime domain and by extension the Gulf of Guinea.
Admiral Gambo spoke at the flag-off of EXERCISE OBANGAME EXPRESS 2022, explaining that this is necessary to ensure that legitimate economic activities thrive within the areas of the Gulf of Guinea.
He said that the naval maneuver will impact positively to the Nigerian Navy combat operations through training and it will also expose other maritime agencies to the benefit of inter-agency cooperation and international collaboration.
The Chief of Naval Staff revealed that with the latest International Maritime Bureau (IMB) report of March 2022, Nigeria has finally exited the IMB piracy list, adding that, “these achievement is attributable to the sustained presence of the Nigerian Navy vessels at sea and increased regional synergy and maritime domain awareness.
He said that the report by the IMB is indicative that Nigeria is no longer in the list of piracy prone countries, adding that reports from various Regional Maritime Awareness Capabilities Centres indicate improvement in legitimate shipping activities with negligible crime rate.
In the 2022 EXERCISE OBANGAME EXPRESS, the Naval Chief said, Nigerian navy will be deploying 10 war ships, two helicopters, maritime domain awareness assets and elements of the Special Boat Services (SBS).
