Ghana Maritime Authority downplays piracy threats in Ghanaian waters

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The Ghana Maritime Authority says Ghana has tough security measures to deal with the activities of pirates in its territorial waters.

The assurance follows a report by the International Maritime Bureau that piracy in West Africa is overtaking Somali ship attacks.

The report said while about 900 sailors were attacked in Somali waters in 2012, West Africa recorded close to 1,000 attacks.

But the Director General of the Ghana Maritime Authority, Peter Azumah, said the country has adequate measures to protect legitimate business in Ghana's waters.

He said Ghana's oil exploration activities have made it important for the Authority to collaborate with the Ministry of Defence and other agencies to beef up maritime security.

“As a maritime authority Director General, I'm giving you the assurance that we have nothing to fear as a country” he told Joy News.

He said there was a sub-regional co-operative strategy in place to check piracy in the West African sub-region.

According to him, even if the co-operative strategy was not in place, Ghana's domain will still remain secure because there were “formidable” measures in place to deal with piracy.