Aligning Ghana’s Piracy Law with UNCLOS: Reflections from a National Roundtable

On Thursday, 23rd October 2025, I had the honour of chairing a Roundtable Discussion on the Definition of Maritime Piracy under Ghanaian Law. The event was jointly organised by the University of Ghana School of Law and the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, under the auspices of the Ocean Governance Research and Development Project.

The roundtable brought together a select group of legal scholars, practitioners, maritime security experts, and representatives from key institutions to examine how Ghana’s legal framework could be aligned with the definition and jurisdiction of maritime piracy under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS, 1982).

Key Participants and Highlights

Notable personalities in attendance included Professor Peter Atupare, Dean of the University of Ghana School of Law; Professor Josephine Quashie of the College of Humanities; Dr. Godwin Djokoto, Coordinator of the Ocean Governance Project; and Air Vice Marshal Frank Hanson of the Gulf of Guinea Maritime Institute.

Ms. Victoria Asiedua, Principal State Attorney, provided critical insights into the existing discrepancies between the definition of maritime piracy in Ghana’s Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29) and that of UNCLOS. She outlined progress toward addressing these gaps through the Maritime and Related Offences Bill of Ghana, which seeks to criminalise piracy under Ghanaian law and extend universal jurisdiction in line with international conventions.

Emerging Issues and Outcomes

Participants agreed on the need to establish a Working Group to review the draft Maritime Offences Bill, benchmark other national experiences, and assess whether the UNCLOS definition of piracy—limited to acts committed for “private ends”—remains adequate in an era of evolving technologies such as unmanned vessels and aircraft. The group also debated whether the definition should be expanded to include political or ideological motives, given the extension of terrorism into the maritime domain.

My Reflections and Call to Action

In my closing remarks, I recalled the frustration of security agencies that make tremendous efforts to apprehend suspected pirates, only for those efforts to falter due to the absence of enabling legislation. I referenced the Ghana Navy’s 2015 arrest of eight pirates and rescue of hostages onboard MT MARIAM, and the 2020 incident involving the Danish warship ESBERN SNARE—in both cases, the suspects could not be prosecuted in Ghana because of legal limitations.

I emphasised that the Maritime and Related Offences Bill is more than a legal formality. It represents the foundation for stronger enforcement, seamless regional cooperation, and credible deterrence against maritime crime.

Piracy is not a theoretical crime. It is a real and present threat to our economic lifeline — the sea. We must ensure our laws are as strong and clear as the seas we seek to protect.

#MaritimeSecurity #RuleOfLaw #UNCLOS #BlueEconomy #GulfOfGuinea #MaritimeGovernance #SecurityLeadership #Ghana