Maritime issues are on the African Union’s radar, but member states must push for a shift from ambition to action.

As the African Union’s (AU) Decade of African Seas and Oceans draws to a close, the continent’s leaders should commit to a clear strategy that measures up to current and emerging maritime security threats.

In June, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted Africa’s central role in global ocean efforts, citing Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy (AIMS 2050) as a model for regional cooperation. But AIMS 2050 was adopted over 10 years ago, and urgently needs to be reviewed and adapted to new threats and better ways of coordinating continental maritime policymaking.

Momentum in Africa around maritime issues has fluctuated over the past decade. After launching AIMS 2050 in 2014, the AU soon prioritised a different framework – the 2016 African Charter on Maritime Security and Safety and Development in Africa (Lomé Charter). Since then, progress on the charter has been slow, with only three ratifications to date.

The Lomé Charter remained the AU’s priority, even though a different, older charter – the revised African Maritime Transport Charter adopted by the AU in 2010 – finally entered into force in 2025 after 15 ratifications were reached.

And despite five years of sustained attention from the AU’s Peace and Security Council (PSC), maritime security has not been institutionalised through regular policy reviews, sustained budget lines and continuous operations by a dedicated unit.

Drawing on the most recent PSC communiqué on 23 April and past lessons from AU efforts, three initiatives should be prioritised by the AU and its member states.

First, an African maritime security expert group should be established to enhance knowledge and coordination among member states. Experience shows that such informal, focused and evolving expert-driven platforms can be effective. The AU’s cybersecurity expert group established in 2019 is a good example. It shows how a small unit can provide ad hoc support and overcome fragmented implementation efforts.

The AU Assembly has repeatedly called for a maritime group. In 2020, it asked the AU Commission to create a consultative forum to review progress. In 2022, the PSC reiterated the call for a body that could provide technical expertise to member states and other stakeholders, enhance maritime security capabilities and facilitate interdepartmental coordination.

However maritime issues currently span several AU Commission departments, which impedes action and coordination. For instance, projects on the sustainable use of ocean resources are carried out by the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment. But maritime security, which is closely tied to sustainable ocean use, falls under the Political Affairs, Peace and Security Department (PAPS) and Office of Legal Counsel.

As with many AU initiatives, success often hinges on overcoming chronic underfunding. The maritime security expert group is intended to have no direct financial implications for the AU Commission. While this should increase the likelihood of its establishment, the absence of dedicated funding may undermine its effectiveness in the long run.

A viable solution is encouraging member states to second experts to the group, reinforcing national ownership and state engagement. To maintain quality and coherence, the AU Commission could ensure that secondees meet technical standards.

A second priority is for the AU Commission to conduct a maritime command-post exercise. Overseen by PAPS, the Amani Africa III exercise would be the first maritime drill under the African Standby Force’s umbrella. Rather than at-sea or live-fire activities, it could test command and control functions through simulations of piracy, illegal fishing or an emergency such as a seaborne evacuation of civilians. The expert group could help develop the scenarios and evaluate responses.

The exercise could be linked to ongoing efforts to activate the Combined Maritime Task Force established in 2023 in the Gulf of Guinea. The task force will provide rapid, coordinated kinetic responses to piracy and armed robbery threats. It will also coordinate patrols and joint operations and share information, mirroring the approach of combined forces in the Indian Ocean and Red Sea.

The Gulf of Guinea task force should be a platform for regional engagements, feeding operational lessons into other AU processes. The PSC has repeatedly called for similar forces to be established in other regions, most recently on 23 April.

The third priority is establishing a forum for Chiefs of African Navies and/or Coastguards. The PSC encouraged the AU Commission to help member states convene the first meeting of the committee of African navy and coastguard heads, which is yet to take place.

The committee is envisioned as a formal, diplomatic and permanent platform for coordination among senior officials. Each country would designate a liaison officer to reduce the red tape that often undermines cooperation, build trust and improve information and resource sharing.

The committee would gain from being included in other initiatives. In 2024, for instance, South Africa held the Sea Power for Africa Symposium. This is a major continental forum for African naval leaders to discuss maritime security, regional cooperation and strategies like AIMS 2050. The navies and coastguards committee could be convened during this event, which is designed for dialogue and building consensus.

The committee could recommend priority reforms based on insights from often-neglected African naval and coastguard perspectives. This should become a biannual briefing to the PSC, assisted by the maritime security experts’ group. Together, they could translate technical and operational insights into strategic advice for policymakers and ensure that momentum is sustained.

Written by Timothy Walker, Senior Researcher, Maritime, ISS Pretoria & Denys Reva, Researcher, Africa in the World, ISS Pretoria

This article was first published in the ISS PSC Report