Antwerp to Manage Port of Cotonou
Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the consultancy and investment subsidiary of Antwerp Port Authority, has been appointed by the Council of Ministers of the West African country of Benin to modernise the port of Cotonou. This port is the economic heart of Benin, handling an annual freight volume of around 12 million tonnes. In the longer term, the port authority wants the port to grow further, but both the infrastructure and the organization are outdated. The government therefore decided to temporarily outsource the management of the port. “We are delighted that the Benin government has opted for the expertise and knowhow of Antwerp,” says port alderman Marc Van Peel, who is also chairman of PAI.
Republic of Benin Taps AdvanFort as First PMSC
Gulf of Guinea counter-piracy accord adds international ballast to company rebranding. AdvanFort International, Inc., a leading U.S. maritime security firm, has announced that the Government of the Republic of Benin has granted it permission—the first given by a West Africa government—to conduct counter-piracy operations for both domestic and foreign-flagged commercial vessels throughout Benin's waters. “It is with great pleasure that I can confirm that President Dr. Thomas Boni…
W. African Port Offers Anchorage Piracy Protection
The head of Benin army and navy has issued an official note to express the commitment of Benin Government to secure Benin Waters against sea crime. The protection, security and safety of Benin maritime space is a national priority for the government as it is considered vital in the economic and social development of the country. Apart from some important diplomatic commitments engaged in the sub-region and the writing of a national strategy of maritime protection and safety, the Benin government has adopted concrete and operational measures to maintain his maritime level at its best level. In the harbour of Cotonou port, Benin Government has created some security zones for vessels to anchor.
Child Slave Ship Arrives in Benin
Police, aid workers and government officials gathered in Benin's port of Cotonou on Tuesday to await a ship suspected to be carrying scores of child slaves. The Nigerian-registered MV Eterino has been at the center of a frantic international search since Benin alerted the world last week that it was carrying a suspected 180 children, sold by poor families to work for nothing in oil-rich Gabon. "I am relieved that the boat is coming after four days," Benin's social protection minister said. The cargo vessel sailed from Cotonou on March 30 bound for Libreville in Gabon, but it was turned back there and later from Cameroon's port of Douala last Thursday. UNICEF, the U.N.
