Deep Blue Project Targets Illegal Fishing, Cargo Violations To Boost Revenue – HLSI

The Deep Blue Project is expanding its maritime surveillance and intelligence capabilities to tackle illegal fishing, cargo violations and other unlawful activities in Nigerian waters, as part of efforts to improve government revenue and strengthen the country’s maritime economy.

The chief executive officer of HLS International, Tal Spector, disclosed this while presenting the capabilities of the Deep Blue Project at an international exhibition, where the company showcased new security equipment and technologies deployed to support maritime surveillance and law enforcement in Nigeria.

Spector explained that the project, operated by HLS International in partnership with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy and in collaboration with the Ministry of Defence, goes beyond combating piracy, militancy and the trafficking of arms and ammunition.

According to him, the initiative also monitors vessel movements, cargo activities, illegal fishing and environmental violations, including the unauthorised dumping of hazardous waste into the sea.

He said these activities have direct implications for government revenue, the livelihoods of coastal communities, public health and the sustainability of Nigeria’s marine resources.

“The Deep Blue Project is not only about piracy and militancy and arms and ammunition. It is also about illegal fishing activities that are affecting the people of Nigeria. It is also about the income for NIMASA, which affects the financial capabilities of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” Spector said.

He added that effective maritime surveillance was necessary to ensure that vessels operating in Nigerian waters complied with applicable laws and regulations, noting that failure to enforce the rules could encourage illegal activities and deprive the country of legitimate revenue.

“One of the things that the Deep Blue Project is doing is to make sure that any vessel that is coming in and out of Nigeria is working according to the law and according to the regulations. Someone needs to enforce those regulations; otherwise, everybody will do whatever they want, and nobody will take responsibility for that. This is exactly what the Deep Blue Project is all about,” he said.

Spector explained that the project’s Command and Control Centre could monitor vessels travelling from different parts of the world towards Nigeria’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), providing intelligence on vessel identities, ownership, International Maritime Organisation (IMO) numbers and Automatic Identification System (AIS) transmissions.

He said the surveillance capability enabled operators to identify vessels and examine their movements, including those that might switch off their AIS transponders, thereby supporting intelligence gathering and enforcement operations.

“As you know already, the Deep Blue Project can watch, see, follow and track any vessel that is coming from any place in the world to the EEZ of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We know the owners of the vessels, we know the IMO numbers, and we know whether a vessel is using AIS or not using AIS. We have all the necessary intelligence and information about any vessel that is coming in and out,” he said.

According to him, the project is also incorporating additional intelligence capabilities to improve its ability to monitor cargo movements and other activities of interest to NIMASA and relevant government agencies.

“Technology is always changing, coming forward and getting better. For us, the C4I system, for example, provides intelligence, including a background of 15 years of history of any vessel that is coming in and out. In the last couple of months, we have integrated additional intelligence into the system that allows us to see exactly what cargoes, dry cargoes and many other things that are of interest to NIMASA and other organisations,” Spector said.

He stressed that continuous investment in technology and operational equipment was necessary to keep pace with criminal networks and ensure that maritime laws were enforced effectively.

“We have to be updated, we have to bring new assets, we have to use new assets, and we have to make sure that we are always on top of whoever is trying to do something else and enforce the law. At the end of the day, this is also about increasing revenue, because the revenues are good for the people of Nigeria,” he said.