Tinubu to launch AU’s combined maritime task force for Gulf of Guinea

President Bola Tinubu will launch the African Union combined maritime task force – a multinational approach to combat transnational organised crimes across the 6,000 kilometer expanse of the Gulf of Guinea in June.

The Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, speaking through the Chief of Policy and Plans (Navy), Rear Admiral Akinola Olodude, made this known during a news conference, as part of activities lined up to mark the 70th anniversary of the Nigerian Navy.

The African Union Peace and Security Council on 23rd April 2025 endorsed formally the combined maritime task force as a standing and ready to deploy maritime force for the Gulf of Guinea.

Abbas said the President will flag-off the task force which is headquartered in Lagos to symbolise its operationalisation, saying that countries that have joined so far are Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

He said other activities lined up to mark the anniversary include an international fleet review at the Eko Atlantic Waterfront that will be reviewed by Tinubu. “He will be personally conducting the trooping and presentation of colours to the Nigerian Navy and also commission three vessels into the service of the Nigerian Navy,” Abbas said.

The 6th Sea Power for Africa Symposium (SPAS) will be held also to mark the anniversary. “The Symposium started in 2005 and has been rotated between South Africa and Nigeria. This is the 6th edition and the Nigerian Navy is proud to be the one hosting for this year. The theme is leveraging technology for enhanced maritime security in Africa,” the CNS said.

It is a major continental gathering of naval forces and defence leaders. It brings together defence ministries, coast guards, policymakers, and industry experts to address maritime security challenges and unlock Africa’s oceanic resources.

The Nigerian navy was established on 1st June 1956 as the then Naval defence Force with 250 officers and men as well as 11 ships inherited from the erstwhile colonial marine department of the royal navy.

Thereafter, it was designated as the royal Nigerian navy in 1958 and the prefix royal was dropped when Nigeria became a republic in 1963.

The modern day Nigerian navy was legally established through the Act of Parliament number 21 of 1964 as a statutory branch of the armed forces of Nigeria.

The first Nigerian to head the Nigerian navy in 1964 was then Commodore J.E.A. Way. He later transitioned to the title of the Chief of the Naval staff and left the office in 1973 as Vice Admiral.

According to the Naval Chief, the Navy began with a restricted mandate and handful of retrofitted craft but has matured 70 years later into an elite force projecting power confidently across the West African sub-region, the Gulf of Guinea, and the vast maritime expanse of the sub-Saharan Africa.