Abstract
Maritime crimes constitute a significant threat to Nigeria’s national security, maritime
transportation, international trade, energy security and the sustainable development of its blue
economy. This article critically examines the adequacy, coherence and effectiveness of the legal
and institutional frameworks established to prevent, suppress and prosecute maritime crimes in
Nigeria. Adopting a doctrinal research methodology, the study relies principally on primary legal
materials, including the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), the
Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences Act 2019 (SPOMO Act), the Nigerian
Maritime Administration and Safety Agency Act 2007, the Merchant Shipping Act 2007, the
Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act 2003, and relevant international instruments,
particularly the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS) and the
Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation 1988
(SUA Convention). The study also considers relevant judicial decisions, subsidiary legislation,
institutional materials and scholarly literature. UNCLOS provides the principal international
framework for the suppression of piracy, including the obligation of States to cooperate in its
repression and the exercise of jurisdiction over piracy on the high seas. This appraisal critically
examines the effectiveness, strengths, and weaknesses of the legal and institutional frameworks
established for combating maritime crimes in Nigeria. In the long run, only good governance and
economic development on the hinterland would provide long-term reprieve in Nigeria and Gulf of
Guinea as poverty and marine offences go hand in hand. It was recommended that the Niger Delta
region which is engulfed with unemployment, poverty, underdevelopment, and environmental
degradation brought on by oil exploration. It was recommended that the Nigerian government
must provide sufficient funding, extensive training programs, cutting-edge surveillance
technologies to maritime enforcement agencies, revamp the maritime institutions and ensure there
is adequate political stability in order to enhance the effectiveness of countermeasures and
intensify the fight against maritime crimes in the Nigerian Maritime Domain.