Tinubu Declares Nigerian Waters Safe From Piracy

President Bola Tinubu has said that piracy incidents has been eliminated within Nigerian waters following sustained investments in maritime security infrastructure under the country’s Deep Blue Project.

He said the initiative deployed an integrated network of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance assets, including command-and-control centres, special mission vessels, fast intervention boats and aerial platforms.

“The global maritime community has acknowledged the elimination of piracy incidents within Nigerian waters and the substantial reduction of attacks across the Gulf of Guinea,” he said.

The president said maritime sovereignty is an economic imperative for Africa’s future, insisting that secure sea lanes and predictable regulation were necessary conditions for attracting private capital into the blue economy.

He also highlighted Nigeria’s recent institutional reforms, including the creation of a dedicated Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, describing it as proof that ocean governance had become a central pillar of state policy.

Special adviser to the minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Dr. Bolaji Akinola said in a statement that while speaking at the high-level roundtable on Maritime Sovereignty and Ocean Governance during the Africa Forward Summit 2026 in Nairobi, Kenya,
President Tinubu said Nigeria had transformed its maritime strategy from one focused largely on threats to one centred on economic opportunity, regional security and investment.

Tinubu called for deeper regional coordination across the Gulf of Guinea, warning that maritime crime cannot be effectively tackled by countries acting in isolation.

“As we endorse the Nairobi Declaration, Nigeria affirms that maritime sovereignty and ocean governance are the non-negotiable foundations of Africa’s Blue Economy transformation,” he said.

Tinubu concluded by urging African states to treat ocean governance as a generational responsibility, declaring that “the oceans have no duplicate as a common heritage of mankind.”