Nigeria may duplicate functions, roles amid coast guard push

The Senate Committee on Marine Transport recently held a public hearing on the proposed establishment of a Nigeria Coast Guard as a significant step toward strengthening and enforcing maritime laws within Nigeria’s maritime domain. In this report, TOLA ADENUBI examines the pros and cons of the bill.

The United States popularised the use of the Coast Guard when the country, on the 28th of January 1915, established the United States Coast Guard (USCG), a maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces.

The major functions of the U.S. Coast Guard include protection of the United States’ borders; economic and security interests abroad; and defending its sovereignty by safeguarding sea lines of communication and commerce across U.S. territorial waters and its Exclusive Economic Zone.

Speaking during the public hearing held at the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, explained, “Nigeria has a vast coastline of 850 km, the equivalent of 10,000 km in two ways. It is also a place of rich and diverse economic sources.

“With these opportunities come risks, including pollution, overfishing, and the unsustainable exploitation of marine resources.

“The proposed Nigerian Coast Guard is designed to address these challenges, including safeguarding life and property, search and rescue, ensuring environmental protection, and enforcing maritime laws within our coastline and inland waterways.”

CONFLICTS/DUPLICATION OF ROLES

While the US Coast Guard has remained a model for many developing countries, in Nigeria, many of the roles that fall under the Coast Guard jurisdiction have either been taken up by other agencies of government or are the major functions of the Nigerian Navy.

POLLUTION:

A major campaign by the promoters of the Nigerian Coast Guard Bill is the issue of pollution of the nation’s waterways and the need for a Coast Guard to fight against such menace.

The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), which is the agency of government recognized by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) as the Designated Authority (DA) has a full-fledged unit called the Marine Environment Management Unit (MEM).

The MEM is responsible for implementing section 44–45 of the NIMASA Act on the prevention/control of marine pollution. It is also responsible for the implementation of domesticated international maritime conventions and national laws on marine environment.

Some of the functions of the NIMASA MEM includes: Oil discharge monitoring to ensure proper disposal of waste; Ensures function of Oil-Water Separator (OWS) to ensure compliance with 15PPM in a vessel in line with the provisions of the Marine Pollution Convention (MARPOL) and annexes thereof; Inspection of relevant anti-pollution documents/certificates on board vessels to ensure compliance with relevant IMO conventions; Monitoring to ensure discharge of waste into reception facilities; Investigating the cause, determining the magnitude and extent of damage done to the marine environment as a result of an established oil spill; Deploying response personnel and equipment to assist in cleanup operations with other government agencies where necessary in the case of a spillage; Undertaking the coordination of compensation of victims of oil pollution damage from ships in line with IOPC fund convention; Inspecting tank washing process and facilities to ensure that dangerous/poisonous chemicals are not discharged into Nigerian waters; amongst others.

With environmental pollution expected to be a core function of the proposed Nigeria Coast Guard, it is obvious that the yet to be established Coast Guard is already on a collision course with NIMASA.

SECURITY: The issue of maritime security is another major point being pushed by the promoters of the Nigerian Coast Guard Bill. This also puts the new agency in conflict with the Nigerian Navy and NIMASA, giving that both agencies have collaborated via the Integrated National Security and Waterways Protection Infrastructure, otherwise known as the Deep Blue Project, to ensure that the nations maritime industry enjoys a very high degree of safety compared to the daily attacks on container carrying vessels by pirates prior to 2021 when the Deep Blue project was launched.

Aside the fact that the Deep Blue project has brought some degree of sanity to the nation’s waters, the amount of public funds that have been expended on the project, running into billions of Naira, raises eyebrow as to what will become of the project in the event that a Nigerian Coast Guard is established.

SEARCH AND RESCUE:

Again, the plan to establish a Nigerian Coast Guard for Search and Rescue efforts is in direct conflict with the Maritime Safety and Seafarers Standard Department (MSSSD) of NIMASA.

The MSSSD unit of NIMASA primarily regulates shipping activities in Nigeria through the implementation of relevant IMO Conventions which cover Flag State Control, Port State Control, Surveys and Inspections, Navigation Systems, Hydrographic Services, Search and Rescue Services, Ship Casualty/Incident Investigations, Ship Security, Seafarers Qualification Training and Certification, Training Record Book, Seafarers Medical Examination, Marine Superintendent Services, and Qualification/Training.

COMPLEMENTARY ROLE

While there are fears that the establishment of a Nigerian Coast Guard might lead to underfunding of some agencies of government, including the Nigerian Navy, the persistent plundering of the nation’s fisheries resources by foreign vessels, mostly of Asian origin, readily backs the establishment of the Nigerian Coast Guard.

Nigeria has over the years struggled to tame foreign vessels plundering her vast marine resources. The effect of Illegal, Unreported, Unregulated (IUU) fishing activities has left many riverine communities in Nigeria looking for divine intervention.

Speaking recently at a Maritime Business Roundtable Breakfast Meeting on Fishing and Fisheries in Lagos, the President of the Nigerian Trawler Owners Association (NITOA), Mrs. Ben Okonkwo, noted that IUU fishing poses a direct threat to food security and socio-economic stability in Nigeria and other parts of the world.

According to the NITOA President, “IUU reduces the chances of providing adequate measures for the sustenance of the ecosystem and the biodiversity of the marine environment.”

Despite the presence of maritime security agencies, many of these foreign vessels have continued to plunder marine resources within the Gulf of Guinea (GoG), turning off their Automatic Identification System (AIS) during such covert operations, thereby evading detection by security operatives.

While some vessels have been apprehended via a joint collaboration between the Nigerian Navy and NIMASA, the refusal of these plundering vessels to stay off Nigerian waters only attests to the fact that many gets away with such devilish acts.

If the plan to establish a Nigeria Coast Guard scales through, it is only hoped that the new agency of government will bring to an end the continuous plundering of the nation’s aquatic life by foreign vessels.

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