Geneva: UNOSAT has released a global report on maritime piracy. The report constitutes the first global geospatial analysis on the issue. What started with identifying captured ships delivering humanitarian assistance and other goods using satellite imagery later expanded to regional geospatial analyses for the western Indian Ocean. The current report assesses piracy at the global level. This research includes detailed geo-spatial analyses, while relating findings to complementary factors, including references to specific examples illustrating the complexity of the piracy issue. The report also covers the financial aspects of global piracy, as well as anti-piracy activities and future outlooks in a changing meteorological climate.
The work takes into account studies from different sources, such as UN sister agencies, academia, insurance industry, shipping companies, European Commission and the World Bank. This global report on maritime piracy has identified several important trends related to maritime security. Based on a refined and detailed analysis of primarily data from International Maritime Organization (IMO) Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS) «Piracy and Armed Robbery» module – International Maritime Organization (IMO) Global Integrated Shipping Information System (GISIS) – UNITAR has been able to explore how trends in geospatial patterns and severity of reported piracy incidents are developing, from 1995 to 2013.
Some detailed geospatial analyses focus on the period 2006-2013 due to improved records for geo-locating incidents. Our analysis includes the added cost of piracy for the maritime industry at a global level and how these are linked to anti-piracy initiatives. Furthermore, costs related to paid ransoms and effects on the local economy in piracy land-bases are explored. There are two areas where significant trends in piracy activities are observed: the Western Indian Ocean, including the Gulf of Aden, and the Gulf of Guinea. In other areas, notably eastern Indian Ocean, including the Malacca Strait, and in South America, no major trends are observed. While activities in South America are relatively minor, piracy in the Malacca Strait continues to be a major disruptor for safe routes in the eastern Indian Ocean.
Source: UNITAR
