IMO has signed a €2 million agreement with Germany to boost implementation of the Yaoundé Code of Conduct (YCC), under which countries in West and Central Africa have committed to tackle piracy, armed robbery against ships, and illicit maritime activity in the region.
IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim met with H.E. Mr. Miguel Berger, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of Germany to the IMO on 28 November to mark the signing of the agreement and highlight the importance of supporting countries in the Gulf of Guinea region to tackle illicit maritime activity. The agreement was signed on 20 November by IMO and the Germany Federal Foreign Office (GFFO).
The allocation of funds for this two-year project aims to bolster implementation of the Code and enhance maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea. Support will be targeted to the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Gulf of Guinea Commission (GGC), as well as the regional and national bodies of the YCC architecture (*) to ensure a sustainable process of improving maritime security governance in the Gulf of Guinea
Among other things, the project will provide direct support to the Inter-regional Coordination Centre (ICC), based in Yaoundé, Cameroon. The centre plays a strategic role in fostering cooperation in the region.
The 2013 Code of Conduct concerning the repression of piracy, armed robbery against ships, and illicit maritime activity in West and Central Africa (Yaoundé Code of Conduct) contains a comprehensive regional maritime security framework to counter piracy and armed robbery against ships, as well as other illicit maritime activities as well, such as Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing, drug smuggling, etc.