The 5th Ordinary Meeting of the ECOWAS Sub-Committee of the Chiefs of Naval Staff is underway in Accra.

The primary aim of this meeting is to establish the legal status of the staff who have been deployed to the ECOWAS Maritime Centres.

Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security at the ECOWAS commission Dr. Abdel-Fatau Musah who on behalf of president of the Commission, H.E. Dr. Omar Alieu Touray, opened deliberations of the security chiefs told JoyNews the meeting is occasioned by the decision of ECOWAS to progressively operationalize its security architecture especially the defense aspect of it.

This architecture he says is supposed to protect our maritime domain, water bodies, the Gulf of Guinea and some of the lakes and rivers in our region.

“There are a whole lot of developments as far as the protection of our maritime domain is concerned. We've set up the regional maritime architecture. They are supposed to be the centers for monitoring our maritime domain and it is still under (0:20) operationalization. So this meeting is going to discuss how to strengthen that architecture”

He further explained that West Africa’s maritime architecture includes the Sahel and the coastal countries hence given the situation in that part of the region, there delineations will focus on how to enhance collaboration with neighbors in the Sahel in order to link them because their import-export trade goes through coastal West Africa.

Other key items on the agenda include the implementation of the recommendations from the 4th meeting in Cabo Verde, framework for the Combined Maritime Task Force in the Gulf of Guinea, updates on joint maritime operations, status of the staff who have been deployed, and country presentations on maritime security.

In his remarks, the Commissioner highlighted the need to ensure the security of the ECOWAS maritime area and the continued cooperation among the member states to respond to the maritime security issues in the region.

Ahead of the commencement of the summit a four-member delegation from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), led by Director of Peacekeeping and Regional Security, Dr Cyriaque Agnekethom, paid a courtesy call on the Ghana Navy Headquarters aimed at strengthening regional coordination, encourage the exchange of best practices, and improve collective responses to maritime threats in the Gulf of Guinea and across West
Africa's maritime domain.

During the visit, Dr Agnekethom highlighted the Sub-Committee's achievements and ongoing efforts to deepen regional maritime cooperation.

He commended the Ghana Navy for its contributions and thanked it for its continued
leadership and active role in joint regional initiatives.

Receiving the delegation on behalf of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Chief Staff Officer at Naval Headquarters, Commodore Ben Baba Abdul, also explained the role maritime security plays in Ghana's economy, trade, and the protection of its marine resources.