ReCAAP: Capacity Building Workshop to Strengthen Focal Points’ Capability to Combat Piracy and Sea Robbery against ships

The ReCAAP Information Sharing Centre (ISC), in cooperation with its Bangladesh Focal Point, the Bangladesh Department of Shipping, Ministry of Shipping, concluded a three-day Capacity Building Workshop (CBW) held in Dhaka, Bangladesh from 24
to 26 October 2023. The workshop served to strengthen the skillsets of ReCAAP Focal Point officers to report and verify incidents of piracy and sea robbery in Asia.

Mr Tipu Munshi, Honourable Minister of Commerce, Bangladesh, on 25 October 2023, graced as the Chief Guest for the inaugural function of the capacity building workshop. He said that Bangladesh will continue to work closely with the ReCAAP ISC to suppress piracy and armed robbery against ships.

The workshop was attended by the coast guards, navies and maritime law enforcement agencies from 11 ReCAAP Focal Points (Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States,
Vietnam), and the regional agencies from Indonesian Coast Guard and Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA). In addition, representatives from the Bangladesh Ministry of Shipping, Port Authority, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh Coast Guard and Navy, and the Ship Owners’ Association also attended the workshop.

The ReCAAP Focal Points during the workshop shared their countries’ efforts in preventing incidents of piracy and sea robbery at their ports, anchorages, and territorial waters. The officers from ReCAAP Focal Points also took part in a training session and Table Top Exercise to familiarise themselves with using ReCAAP ISC’s Information Network System (IFN). The IFN enables the Focal Point officers to share detailed and secure information on piracy and sea robbery incidents within the ReCAAP network.

Rear Admiral (Retd) Md Khurshed Alam, BN, Secretary of Maritime Affairs Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh, delivered a lecture on international maritime law.

Mr Krishnaswamy Natarajan, Executive Director of ReCAAP ISC, said “I am grateful to the Bangladesh Ministry of Shipping for their assistance in co-organising this CBW, which allowed ReCAAP Focal Points to sharpen their skills in incident reporting and enhancing their knowledge in the legal aspects of prosecuting criminals at sea. I would like to encourage the shipping community to report piracy or sea robbery incidents to the nearest coastal State MRCC in a timely manner, as it allows the ReCAAP Focal Point to quickly activate law enforcement resources to assist the ship crew in apprehending the perpetrators.”

Ms Delwora Begum, ReCAAP Governor of Bangladesh and Vice-Chairperson of ReCAAP ISC Governing Council, said, “ReCAAP has established its credibility in the maritime space since its formation in 2006, playing a role in keeping ships safe and secure when they traverse Asian waters. As a ReCAAP member State, Bangladesh closely monitors incidents of robbery on ships in our ports, anchorages and territorial waters, and actively contributes to ReCAAP ISC’s mission to suppress piracy and
armed robbery against ships in Asia.” She added, “I wish to thank all CBW participants for their contribution, and express my
appreciation to ReCAAP ISC for choosing Bangladesh as the host country for CBW 2023.”
Source: ReCAAP