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The Gulf of Guinea is an important geo-political choke point for shipping transporting oil extracted in the Niger delta, as well as goods to and from central and southern Africa. Piracy, armed robbery at sea, illegal fishing, smuggling and trafficking, pose a major threat to maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea and ultimately to the economic development of the entire region. The 2018 EU Maritime Security Strategy (EU MSS) Action Plan contributes to the implementation of the EU Global Strategy as well as the EU Gulf of Guinea Strategy and Action Plan.

The EU is committed to the improvement of maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea and actively contributes to the development of local capacities of coastal states in the region. Hence, a set of programmes and projects focused on capacity building, funded through the Foreign Policy Instruments (FPI) and the European Development Fund (EDF) are geared towards implementing the Strategy for the Gulf of Guinea and its rolling Action Plan. They encompasses:

• GoGIN project and WeCAPS under the Critical maritime routes programme;
• SWAIMS, an EDF-funded project to support the implementation of the ECOWAS Integrated Maritime Strategy;
• PASSMAR project.

► More on EU Maritime Security Factsheet: The Gulf of Guinea