Kofi Ampeah Woode
The Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC) under Phase III of the Danish Maritime Security Programme for the Gulf of Guinea (DMSP 3), has commenced a 5-day training on Maritime Security Reporting for media practitioners in Ghana.
The weeklong program from Monday 22 May 2023 at the Best Western Atlantic Hotel, Takoradi, for the selected press, is a pilot course and the first of capacity building outputs of the five-year project on “Integrated Responses to Threats to Maritime Safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea Maritime (GoG) Domain in West and Central Africa”, which is funded by the Government of Denmark, under its Peace and Stabilization Engagement (PSE 3).
Delivering a speech at the opening ceremony, the Ambassador of Denmark to Ghana – His Excellency (HE) Mr Tom Norring said, in the chain of interventions against criminality in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG), the Media as a crucial stakeholder, has been usually excluded.
He said given the complexity of maritime crimes and the high likelihood for misinformation in the area, which often counters maritime security efforts, the role and capacity of the media in maritime reporting cannot, and should not be overlooked.
Ambassador Norring said the course intends to enhance media practitioners’ capacity to: 1) Raise awareness about maritime crimes and educate the public about the severity and implications of these crimes; 2) Provide accurate and timely maritime reporting to help dispel misconceptions and counter misinformation about maritime crimes and maritime security efforts:
Thirdly, it is to influence maritime security policy and strategy formulation by collecting and disseminating information about maritime crime trends, amongst others; and 4) support the monitoring and evaluation of maritime security efforts by both state and non-state actors, at the national and regional levels.
In his welcome address to the participants, the Commandant, KAIPTC – Major General (Maj Gen) Richard Addo Gyane said maritime piracy in the GoG has seen a marked decline since the second half of 2021 to date, but since bad news sells, enough has not been heard about why and what has led to the sudden lull in piratical activities.
He continued that Nigeria has reported no incidents of piracy since 2022, and with only two cases of piracy reported in the GoG in the first quarter of 2023, one would have expected the headlines to be bursting with news of efforts that have contributed to this state of affairs, including Nigeria’s Deep Blue project, and the deployment of patrol vessels by the European Union (EU) in the GoG.
He said the power of the media in amplifying stories, experiences and events, ensures a critical role in supporting transparency, accountability, and public awareness of maritime developments, since they are key partners in maritime security, validating the work of maritime actors, such as state security agencies, maritime agencies, shipping lines, oil drilling companies, as well as acting as watchdogs on behalf of the public, by analyzing and highlighting developments in the maritime domain.
Assigning a reason to the seeming silence of press on the GoG’s improvement, General Gyane said, there is a challenge by the complex and nuanced nature of the maritime domain, coupled with the limited capacity of journalists to fully appreciate the GoG maritime space.
He said, for journalists to achieve an intended impact in their maritime reportage, they need a critical understanding of the maritime issues at hand, as well as harness relationships with maritime stakeholders in order to report accurate information, provide meaningful insights, and do so with professionalism.
The Commandant concluded that, from a need that was shared by journalists in 2022 in Takoradi, which resonated across the 5 targeted countries visited last year in KAIPTC’s consultative endeavour, it is clear that media practitioners need to be on board to support current efforts at maritime security in the GoG.
DMSP 3 is a sequel to the DMSP Phase II (2019-2021) funded project – “Enhancing Regional Research, Capacity Building and Convening of Stakeholders Towards a Safer Maritime Domain in the Gulf of Guinea”.
The course has been designed with inputs from maritime security experts, journalists and academia in the sub-region and reflects the most current realities on the ground.
Present at the opening ceremony were Ms. Afua Lamptey – Acting Head, Conflict Management, Programme, KAIPTC, Senior faculty members, Mrs Rosemond Aryeetey – Head, Corporate Affairs, and staff of KAIPTC.
