According to this document from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Stable Seas research institute, published on Tuesday, "Southeast Asia and the Gulf of Guinea have experienced almost the same number of incidents in 2020, but 623 of the 631 sailors (99%) affected by kidnappings worldwide in 2020 were working in the Gulf of Guinea. "

The waters of this gulf bordered by some twenty countries and which stretches from Senegal to Angola are rich in hydrocarbons and fishery resources.

Recently, international mobilization has increased to better fight against piracy.

"Although there has been a decrease in the number of pirate attacks so far in this dry season, we have seen more brutal attacks where more sailors have been kidnapped," notes the Norwegian Minister of Affairs. foreigners, Anniken Huitfeldt, who came to New York to educate UN members on this issue.

The reduced figures "may be linked both to the increased attention paid to piracy in the coastal states of the Gulf of Guinea, to the international naval presence" or to Nigeria's maritime initiatives and to adopting a "new legislation to investigate, prosecute and convict individuals suspected of involvement in piracy," the minister told AFP.

According to the UN report, pirate groups concentrated in the Niger Delta overlooking the Gulf of Guinea "earn perhaps $ 5 million in direct income per year from theft and hostage-taking" .

"The majority of this income - nearly $ 4 million a year - is stolen and extorted from non-African entities seeking to free non-African hostages," "leading some to conclude that the Gulf of Guinea countries are not the main victims ", specifies this document entitled" Pirates of the Gulf of Guinea: an analysis of the costs for the coastal States ".

"Main victims"

But "the total cost of piracy for the coastal states of the Gulf of Guinea (represents) at least 1.925 billion per year," the report said, citing direct and indirect losses such as security investments that could go to others. spending areas.

"After examining the indirect financial damages and the opportunity costs, it becomes clear that the countries of the Gulf of Guinea have the most to gain from reducing piracy and armed robbery in the region," he said. -he.

Faced with the scourge, countries like Denmark have deployed naval means to protect commercial cargo.

For Anniken Huitfeldt, whose country financed the report, "any military contribution must be deployed in close coordination with the countries of the region".

If his country does not intend to mobilize a ship at this stage, he could push the UN Security Council, of which Norway is currently a non-permanent member, to act as it has done for Somali waters.

"As a great maritime nation, Norway is in favor of increased attention by the Security Council" to this threat, she said, emphasizing diplomatic action.

Off the coast of Somalia, military interventions from 2008 with maritime surveillance planes and ships, particularly American and European, have made it possible over the past four years to identify no incidents linked to piracy.

The UN Security Council's authorization for these operations has just been renewed for only three months, Somalia judging that it no longer has any reason to exist.

Westerners fear for their part a security vacuum if it is not prolonged.

© 2021 AFP