About 1,723 vessels conducting ‘dark activities’ in Nigerian waters without transmitting the Automatic Identification System (AIS) to evade tracking between January and April 2025 have been identified.
According to the Command, Control, Communication, Computers and Intelligence (C4I) Operation Centre officials, these vessels are suspected to have been engaging in illegal fishing, oil theft, and waste dumping, posing economic and environmental risks to the nation.
Speaking, yesterday, at the House of Representatives Committee on Maritime Safety, Education and Administration oversight visit to the Nigerian Maritime Resource Development Centre (NMRDC) in Kirikiri, Lagos, the Shift Officer, C4I Operation Centre, Lawal Abdulrasak, explained that Nigeria’s waters account for nearly 47 per cent of all vessel traffic in the Gulf of Guinea, with over 33,000 port calls recorded between January and April 2025.
He said these activities within Nigeria’s waters pose threats with the possibility of having attack on any of these vessels. Abdulrasak also stated that 4,000 unique vessels entered Nigeria’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), with 166 of them entering for the first time, raising questions about why they are attracted to Nigerian waters.
He said the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) holds Nigeria accountable for securing this vast volume of vessels from insecure maritime activity.
He said: “We have so many vessels coming for illegal bunkering to dump harmful waste inside our waters and to fish illegally. They are part of the 1,723 vessels.”
The C4I officer explained that going “dark” is itself an offence under maritime law and is tracked daily by the centre.However, he noted that their unit does not have the legal authority to detain vessels, as prosecutions fall under other maritime and security agencies.
A member of the committee, representing Obingwa/
Ugwunagbo/Osisioma Federal Constituency, Abia State, Munachim Alozie, questioned the effectiveness of surveillance and enforcement against vessels involved in illegal oil-related activities.
Alozie queried the officials on their ability to detect and respond to such activities and whether current systems truly prevent the illicit transactions taking place in Nigerian waters.
“You said you can analyse vessels coming from China before they reach here. So, why are vessels still going dark? Why don’t you have a mechanism to detect and stop it? What exactly happens when they switch off their AIS?” Alozie questioned.
The Navy Commander of Deep Blue Project, Levi Deyin, sought to downplay concerns, saying not all dark activity indicates wrongdoing, stating that sometimes, it’s a technical fault.
