Wednesday August 9, 2017
Kampala, Aug 8 (Prensa Latina) The Somali Government denounced today at a regional meeting in this capital city the economic damage caused by piracy and other related scourges such as illegal fishing and human trafficking along the country''s 3,000 kilometer coast.
Minister of Fisheries and Marine Resources Abdirahman Mohamed Abdi Hashi said at the meeting, called by the Maritime Security Coordination Committee (MSCC) of Somalia and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) in Eastern Africa, that such scourges are a great concern to Somali people.
Abdi Hashi told the delegates from Somalia and other regional countries as Uganda that the recent massacre of women, children and security forces by Al-Shabab is a reminder of the importance of strengthening maritime security in all areas.
MSCC coordinator Abdi Ali Raghe reiterated that to fight piracy there must be an alternative program for livelihood and initiatives to develop vocation and defense, coordinated by IGAD, which is made up of Uganda, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan, Kenya, Djibouti and Eritrea.
Somalia fights maritime crime actions such as illegal fishing, drug trafficking, dumping of toxic waste, human trafficking, illicit trafficking in arms and wildlife, while MSCC is the means for cooperation and development of maritime security amid member countries.
Meanwhile, IGAD guides national and regional institutions at the legal, judicial and police levels for the prosecution, arrest and transfer of pirates.