The second public-private international counter piracy conference will be held in Dubai in June, aimed at advancing coordination to counter the growing threat of maritime piracy.
 
Foreign ministers and senior government officials from more than 50 countries as well as CEOs of leading global companies in maritime related industries are being invited for the two-day event on June 27 and 28.

The conference, being organised in a partnership between the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and global ports operator DP World,  will be entitled ‘A Regional Response to Maritime Piracy: Enhancing Public-Private Partnerships and Strengthening Global Engagement’.

This UAE driven conference aims to build up on achievements of last year’s UAE-hosted forum, which saw over 700 delegates representing more than 65 governments, international organisations and more than 120 representatives of the global maritime industry come together in Dubai to share experiences and develop coordinated international initiatives to face the challenges of maritime piracy.

The conference signalled a transformative moment in the maritime sector’s engagement with the international community on counter-piracy,  as a number of maritime companies donated funds to the United Nations’ Trust Fund for initiatives to counter piracy off the coast of Somalia, said a statement.

The conference achieved a unanimous agreement of a strong and substantive Conference Declaration that covered a range of counter-piracy issues, and has since served as a benchmark for regional piracy policies, it said.

Piracy’s devastating human and financial costs continue with 13 vessels hijacked and 197 seafarers held in captivity in the first three months of this year. Hundreds of families are being victimised by this growing threat; annual financial cost to global trade is estimated at $12 billion a year, according to the International Maritime Bureau. 

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Foreign Affairs, said: ‘’The UAE believes that maritime piracy, notably in the Gulf of Aden and the western Indian Ocean, remains of serious global concern. Pirate activity off the coast of Somalia continues to plague our region. Attacks by pirates endanger the lives of hundreds of seafarers, just as they undermine the prosperity and livelihoods of Somalia, its immediate neighbourhood, and the world.

“This is the second time that the UAE is inviting foreign ministers, industry leaders and international experts to meet together in Dubai, and to coordinate our international response. We are doing so because we continue to believe that an enhanced counter piracy response can be achieved through greater regional and international engagement on this issue of global concern,” he said.

Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, chairman, DP World, said: “Once more, we are proud to help facilitate this important dialogue. We are very much aware that the private sector continues to be directly impacted by the threat of piracy; hence we wish to reiterate our endeavour in collaborating closely with the respective governments and the international community in this regard. Piracy is indeed a growing destabilizing factor that needs to be combated, not only to help facilitate the safe flow of trade across nations but also to provide a safe working environment for seafarers and peace of mind for their families.

“We are of the view that collaboration through public-private partnership will go a long way to facilitating preventive measures as well as long term solutions to the problem.” – TradeArabia News Service