A renowned global pirates reporting, the International Maritime  Bureau (IMB), has applauded the Nigerian Navy for successfully reducing cases of piracy at the Gulf of Guinea (GOG). 
IBM, in its quarterly report, described the Gulf of Guinea region as the global hotspot for pirate activity over the last 10 years.
The report showed that the number of reported incidents of piracy and armed robbery against ships globally has fallen to the lowest in decades.
IMB Director, Michael Howlett, said the bureau had witnessed 28 attacks by pirates and armed robbery on ships and containers in the first nine months of 2021, compared to 46 for the same period in 2020.
The IMB said Nigeria reported only four incidents in the first nine months of 2021, in comparison to 17 in 2020 and 41 in 2018.
Crew kidnappings in the Gulf of Guinea have also dropped with only one crew member kidnapped in Q3 2021, compared to 31 crew members taken in five separate incidents during Q3 2020, it said.
“We welcome the decrease of piracy and armed robbery attacks in the Gulf of Guinea and the efforts taken by maritime authorities in the region.
“However, there is need to sustain efforts to ensure the continued safety of seafarers as they transport essential goods throughout the region”, IMB stated. 
The statement decried the recent attacks on MSC Lucia containership at GoG, off the coast of Nigeria, few days ago.
Dryad Global, a maritime security firm who confirmed the attacks, said this was the fifth attack by pirates on ocean going vessels in the country, this year.
The firm said the pirate attack was on MSC Lucia, boarded by an unknown number of attackers approximately 86 nautical miles southwest of the offshore Agbami Oil Terminal, located approximately 70nm south-southwest of the Niger Delta.
“The incident is understood to be ongoing,” the company said.
Dryad advised vessels transiting the area to exercise extreme caution.
MSC Lucia is a Panama-flagged containership measuring 189 meters in length and 1,951 TEU, built in 1985.

By: Chinedu Wosu