African Agency and the International Law of the Sea: New Approaches to Maritime Safety in the Gulf of Guinea

Maritime safety and security in the Gulf of Guinea is a critical yet often underexplored area of African ocean governance. While this region constitutes a strategic corridor for global commerce and energy resources, dominant narratives on safety and security have historically been developed from external viewpoints, particularly those rooted in Western-centric frameworks. Recent scholarship identifies a pressing need to foreground African perspectives, considering unique local realities, governance structures, and security practices. Notably, the Gulf of Guinea faces multifaceted threats—ranging from illicit activities like piracy, oil theft, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing to growing environmental and climate challenges such as coastal flooding, marine biodiversity loss, and maritime accidents. Although international treaties and regional agreements like the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Yaoundé Code of Conduct provide foundational legal frameworks, there remains an urgent demand for critical evaluation of their fitness, effectiveness, and contextual relevance within African governance paradigms.This Research Topic aims to advance nuanced, policy-relevant insights by centering African ownership of maritime safety and security solutions in the Gulf of Guinea. It seeks to interrogate existing legal and institutional mechanisms, evaluate their impact, and propose African-led strategies that strengthen cooperative efforts and build operational capabilities. The objective is to promote scholarship that not only critiques Western-centric approaches but provides space for conceptual innovation, cross-cutting analysis of illicit and non-illicit threats, and integration with African development and security agendas. By addressing both immediate and systemic factors, this Research Topic aspires to enrich the discourse on maritime governance while enhancing practical pathways for sustainable and resilient ocean stewardship.This Research Topic covers the wide spectrum of maritime safety and security challenges as they pertain to the Gulf of Guinea, with a distinct focus on African perspectives, institutional assessment, and cross-sectoral risk analysis. While centered on the Gulf of Guinea, contributions may engage broader implications for African ocean governance, policy reform, and global legal frameworks. To gather further insights in these areas, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:- Afro-centric perspectives and conceptual innovations in maritime security- Legal and institutional architecture of regional maritime governance- Intersections between illicit maritime economies and security dynamics- Environmental and non-illicit maritime and coastal threats- Policy responses, regional cooperation, and strengthening of African agency- Comparative analysis of global and regional legal frameworks relevant to the Gulf of Guinea- Practical case studies of enforcement, capacity-building, and collaborative initiatives- The role of local communities, political economy, and non-state actors in shaping governance outcomes Topic editors: Muhammed Ladan, Osatohanmwen (Osato) Osamudiamen Eruaga Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/80134/african-agency-and-the-international-law-of-the-sea-new-approaches-to-maritime-safety-in-the-gulf-of-guinea