The Honourable Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi (rtd) has called on African Navies to hinge on strong collaborative efforts, resource sharing, developing expertise, increased funding and efficient use of technology to bring about improved ocean governance for robust blue economy in the continent. The Minister, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary Ministry of Defence, Mr Musa Istifanus, made this call during the closing ceremony of the first virtual Sea Power for Africa Symposium held at the Naval Headquarters, Abuja.
According to statement signed by the Director of Naval Information, Commodore Suleman Dahun. General Magashi stated that deliberations in the Symposium revealed some critical issues confronting effective ocean governance such as gaps in the Maritime Domain Awareness infrastructures in various regions, inadequate maritime legal provisions as well as weak resource sharing framework for improved hydrographic capabilities.
These limitations he said would imperatively need to be addressed in order to improve the utility of Maritime Domain Awareness infrastructures. He further identified with the position that the future of blue economy in Africa is intricately tied to effective ocean governance which is achievable through robustly integrated Maritime Domain Awareness infrastructure.
While enjoining participants to gear up efforts towards effectively implementing the resolutions which emanated from intense deliberations during the Symposium, General Magashi affirmed that the objectives of the Seapower for Africa Symposium 2021 have been realized. Furthermore, the Minister brought to fore the need for political leaders to place high premium on the maritime sector and relevant stakeholders in order to enhance cooperation in the management of Africa’s maritime spaces.
Similarly, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo stated that Maritime Domain Awareness infrastructure constitutes a veritable force multiplier which offers naval forces invaluable leverage that enables them optimize the deployment of their platforms to effectively secure their maritime environment for sustainable economic development.
