Five countries, Côte d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, have expressed an interest in working with Nigeria to operationalise the Combined Maritime Task Force (CMTF). Five countries, Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, have expressed an interest in working with Nigeria to operationalise the Combined Maritime Task Force (CMTF). Five countries – Cote d’Ivoire, The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone – have expressed interest in joining Nigeria to operationalise the Combined Maritime Task Force (CMTF).
This is consistent with the Committee of Chiefs of Defence Staff’s approval to operationalise the CMTF via a coalition of ready nations.
Captain AA Folorunsho, the Acting Director of Information for the Nigerian Navy, stated that this was one of the outcomes of the Fifth Meeting of the ECOWAS Sub-Committee of Chiefs of the Naval Staff, which took place in Ghana from February 16 to 20, 2026. The Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas Admiralty Medal, joined other Chiefs of the Naval Staff at the Fifth Meeting.
The CMTF’s flag-off is scheduled for May 31 to June 1, 2026, in Lagos.
The fifth meeting of the ECOWAS Subcommittee of Chiefs of Naval Staff praised Nigeria’s actions as the CMTF’s host country, as well as its support for the CMTF’s launch by designating three ships, one helicopter, eight vehicles, and a temporarily furnished office in Lagos.
The CMTF is expected to be a ready-to-deploy force capable of rapid, coordinated regional maritime security responses, drawing on information from Yaounde Architecture maritime centres to address the Gulf of Guinea’s growing, complex security threats.
The Chief of the Naval Staff’s strategic engagements at the meeting reaffirm Nigeria’s role as a key player in regional maritime security, particularly given the commitments from willing navies to join the CMTF.
His unwavering commitment to working with partner navies under the Yaoundé Code of Conduct is expected to improve regional coordination, encourage the exchange of best practices, and contribute to the development of an African-led solution for a more effective collective response to maritime threats in the GoG and throughout West Africa’s maritime domain. His unwavering commitment to working with partner navies under the Yaoundé Code of Conduct is expected to improve regional coordination, encourage the exchange of best practices, and contribute to the development of an African-led solution for a more effective collective response to maritime threats in the GoG and throughout West Africa’s maritime domain.
The ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace, and Security (ECOWAS-CPAPS), Ambassador Abdel-Fatau Musah, joined the Naval Chiefs.
The directors of the West Africa Regional Maritime Security Centre and the Multinational Maritime Coordination Centres (MMCC) Zones E, F, and G will also be in attendance.
Other attendees include representatives from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the European Union-African Chamber of Commerce, and the Commander of the Combined Maritime Task Force (CMTF).
At the meeting, the ECOWAS-CPAPS praised the progress made since the adoption of the ECOWAS Integrated Maritime Strategy, including the implementation of Operation SAFE DOMAIN in Zone E, Operation ANOUANZE in Zone F, and Joint Maritime Patrols in MMCC Zone G.
He emphasised the importance of broader security cooperation in combating terrorism, drug trafficking, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, as well as improved coordination with landlocked countries like Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger.
The commissioner recognised Nigeria’s sophisticated FALCON EYE surveillance system and leadership in combating maritime criminality in the Gulf of Guinea (GoG).
He also urged the meeting to devise plans to address the Lake Chad Basin’s receding water levels.
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