Piracy is now off the radar in the Gulf of Aden, but growing elsewhere!

The Piracy issue seems to have gone "Off the Radar" in 2015 for good reason, as there have been no hijacks or kidnaps for around 2 years in the once Pirate infested waters off the Gulf of Aden and along the east coast of Africa.

Yet back in 2010 it was a different story, whereby the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and International Maritime Bureau released a global piracy report, which uncovered the following:

• Pirates captured 1,181 seafarers
• Pirates killed 8 seafarers
• Ships reported 445 attacks in 2010
• Hijackings off the coast of Somalia accounted for 92% of all ship seizure

Thanks to anti-piracy measures and a number of surveillance ships monitoring the Gulf of Aden area the situation is under control. Pirate activity now seems to have moved to the West coast of Africa in the waters that surround Nigeria, however the number of incidents are low, compared to the past activity along the east coast of Africa.

While things are quiet now, naturally recent events in Yemen are raising new potential concerns. Moreover, Red Sea cruising is far from recovery as a sad consequence.

There is however increased Piracy activity off West Africa close to Nigeria and also the malacca Straights off Malaysia. There are also concerns about the potential of ISIS getting involved in Piracy off the Mediterranean, so it's not all plain sailing.