Regional—Technical Assistance for the Implementation of the Support Programme to the Maritime Security Strategy in Central Africa (PASSMAR)

The Gulf of Guinea is an important shipping zone transporting oil and gas, as well as goods to and from central and southern Africa. Piracy, armed robbery at sea, kidnapping of seafarers, illegal fishing, smuggling and trafficking, and transnational organized crime pose a major threat to maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea and ultimately to the economic development of the entire region. The European Union (EU) Maritime Security Strategy Action Plan as well as the EU Gulf of Guinea Strategy and Action Plan frame the EU’s response to these challenges.

DAI’s work aims to reinforce the safety and security in the maritime domain in the Gulf of Guinea in the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) Region.

The PASSMAR program is made up of two independent, but complementary components. Our work coordinates both actions—the first component managed by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime developing maritime legal frameworks, while the second component—the DAI-led assistance reinforces maritime governance and the control of maritime spaces in the ECCAS Region. Additionally, our intervention facilites the inclusion of civil society in the process of maritime policies.

Sample Activities

• Support the process of developing and integrating regional maritime policies in the ECCAS Region.
• Improve the administration of common maritime space in the ECCAS Region to enable cross-border maritime cooperation.
• Reinforce the monitoring and surveillance capacities of strategic and operational structures on maritime safety and security.
• Strengthen the intervention capacities of the maritime administrations and judicial systems responsible for public order at sea.