The International Bargaining Forum (IBF) has removed Nigeria from the list of nations designated as risk maritime corridors. This is just as War Insurance Premium would no longer be paid for ships heading to the country.
The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Gambo, said that Nigeria has been removed from the list of countries paying War Insurance Premium on ships whose destination is Nigeria by Llyods of London, United Kingdom.
The cargo ships and other vessels plying the Nigerian route or whose destination was Nigeria were made to pay a significantly higher premium on insurance due to heightened security fears and attacks including piracy, a frequent occurrence in the past before the Nigerian Navy checkmated the criminal activities of pirates in the country’s sea lanes and maritime domain.
Admiral Gambo noted that with the removal of the tag, insurance premium to be paid by ships doing business with, or plying Nigerian sea-lanes would become normal insurance paid by other countries, which is less expensive and will enhance shipping/cargo trade.
Also, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has said Nigeria has been removed from the list of countries designated as risk maritime nations by the IBF.
This is a confirmation of the improved global ratings of security in Nigerian maritime domain as a result of sustained collaborative efforts of NIMASA and the Nigerian Navy.
The IBF, which is a body that brings together the International Transport Federation (ITF), and the international maritime employers that make up the Joint Negotiating Group, JNG, listed five designated risk areas and applicable benefits in the event of attacks leading to deaths and disability, mentioning the Gulf of Guinea as second extended war risk zone covering Liberia/Ivory Coast border to 00°N 005°E, to the Angola/Namibia border.