Regional cooperation is crucial in the fight against piracy and armed robbery against ships and other illicit maritime activities. A new website www.dcoc.org highlights the Djibouti Code of Conduct, adopted under the auspices of IMO which has been instrumental in containing the threat of piracy in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden.
Its expansion into the Jeddah Amendment in 2017 introduced a comprehensive approach to dealing with broader threats to maritime security and the root causes, thereby improving regional maritime security, law enforcement, and governance capabilities as well as facilitating maritime sector development.
The website for sharing information on the implementation of the code of conduct has been developed to showcase achievements, ongoing work, planned activities, coordination of capacity-building efforts and support resource mobilization. The platform will play a significant part in enhancing regional cooperation in countering piracy and other illicit maritime activities.
The Code of Conduct concerning the Repression of Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in the Western Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, also referred to as the Djibouti Code of Conduct, was adopted on 29 January 2009 by the representatives of: Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Maldives, Seychelles, Somalia, the United Republic of Tanzania and Yemen. Comoros, Egypt, Eritrea, Jordan, Mauritius, Mozambique, Oman, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates signed soon after bringing the total to 20 countries from the 21 eligible to sign.
