The chief of naval staff, vice-admiral Awwal Gambo, has been selected as the lead speaker at an international symposium on ‘Africa Ocean Blue Economy’ in South Africa in May.

This is contained in a statement by Patrick Agbambu, president/chief executive of the Security Watch Africa Initiative (SWAI) and the Centre for Military Studies (CEMIS), Stellenbosch University, South Africa, organisers of the two-day symposium.

The statement said the symposium would hold between May 4 and 5, with the theme ‘Blue Ocean Economy and Security in Africa: Challenges and Prospects for Agenda 2063’.

The statement pointed out that the symposium would explore various aspects of the ‘Blue Ocean Economy’ and the potential roles that the navies of various countries could play in conjunction with public and private sector entities to ensure security on the continent’s ocean waters.

“It is aimed at articulating practical mechanisms in actualising the Blue Ocean Economy for the African continent using Nigeria’s CNS, vice-admiral Awwal Gambo’s outstanding leadership at the Nigerian Navy. The discussions are also aimed at exploring how African Navies have experienced the unlocking of the blue economies in Africa,” said the statement.

The organisers added, “It will further assist to foster inter-naval cooperations and relationships between ECOWAS and Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) Navies.”

The statement further explained that the symposium would provide opportunities for the naval chiefs to frame the agenda for the participation of the navy in their respective Blue water economies.

It noted that each navy would provide a keynote address regarding their experiences defending the blue water economy.

(NAN)