UKMTO Weekly Piracy Report

1. A reminder for vessels transiting the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden and Red Sea to remain vigilant, register with MSCHOA and report to UKMTO upon entering the Voluntary Reporting Area.

2. In open source reporting: Somalia launches a draft policy paper ‘covering matters pertaining to maritime safety, maritime pollution and maritime commercial laws’ (a),

‘EU’s counter piracy naval force welcomes the conviction of 12 men found guilty by the Mauritian court of attempting to carry out an act of piracy against a merchant ship, MSC Jasmine, on 5 Jan 13’ (b),

the BBC Africa correspondent, Tomi Oladipo explains why ‘vessels are more likely to have their crews kidnapped than their cargos taken’ (short video) (c),

CNN carries an article on the cost of illegal fishing off west Africa and how ‘a ‘Blue Economy’ could be an engine of growth and development for the continent’ (d),

the Times of India reflects on the 6 month period since the revision of the Indian Ocean High Risk Area and how ‘this has led to tremendous savings for shipping companies’ and that ‘the Indian navy will continue to dedicate a warship to anti-piracy patrols’ (e).

Download full report here