Piracy: Safer Seas

With a more stable Somalia and improved maritime security, will the downward trend in piracy attacks continue, or will incidents in East African and South-East Asian waters ensure rough seas in future?

Piracy is on the wane. Despite the huge media attention given to high-profile incidents, statistics from the International Maritime Bureau show piracy hit a five-year low in 2012, with only 297 ships attacked globally, compared with 439 the previous year.

The first nine months of 2013 support this trend with only 188 incidents, the lowest third quarter figure since 2006.

But while statistics showing a net decline are indisputable, they mask a more complex picture, including shifting geographical hot spots and the emergence of new, potentially more violent, modes of piracy.

Despite the public perception – fuelled by blockbusters like this year’s Captain Phillips – that piracy is a Somali problem, a large portion of the most recent spate of attacks has been concentrated in the West African region. Of the 188 reported incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships in the first nine months of 2013, Somalia only accounted for 10, according to the IMB.

In contrast, 43 reports were received for the Gulf of Guinea, including the hijacking of seven vessels that resulted in 132 crewmembers being taken hostage. Nigeria accounted for the bulk of these (29) including two vessel hijacks, 11 vessel boardings, 13 vessels being fired upon and three attempted attacks. Nigerian pirates alone accounted for 32 crew kidnappings, with Togo responsible for the remaining two.