Decline in piracy worldwide except Africa
2007 has so far seen a significant decreasing of reported piracy attacks worldwide. From 61 incidents reported during the first quarter of 2006 to 41 incidents of piracy during this year’s first three months. However, the piracy report from International Maritime Bureau (IMB), shows that a number of regions continue to be plagued. In Nigeria, the number of attacks has doubled when compared with the first quarter of 2006. A total of 40 crew members were taken hostage or kidnapped. Even if the situation in Somalia appears to have improved with only one vessel reported hijacked, the IMB strongly recommends that vessels stay at least 75 nautical miles from the Somali coastline. The report highlights the initiative in South East Asia where the cooperation between authorities has led to that the number of reported incidents has been halved.