Maritime Security: Creation of the Togolese Coast Guard Unit, A Crucial Initiative in the Face of Emerging Maritime Safety Challenges

On January 12, 2024, Togo’s Council of Ministers, meeting under the chairmanship of His Excellency Faure Essozimna GNASSINGBE, President of the Republic of Togo, examined and adopted a decree creating the Togolese Coast Guard Unit. This decision comes in response to the new security challenges emerging in the maritime sector, which require a specific approach, distinguishing between defense missions and those of the State’s civil action at sea.

The creation of the special coastguard unit meets the need to set up a permanent surveillance structure for the Togolese maritime area.

The unit’s aim is to reinforce the interministerial organization of the State’s civil action at sea, and to improve its performance in terms of inter-administration coordination and cooperation.

The decree thus establishes the Togolese Coast Guard Unit, which is designed to improve surveillance of Togolese waters, combat trafficking by pirogues outside surveillance zones, and prevent pollution at sea.

Coastal surveillance missions were previously carried out by the French Navy’s interception and deterrence teams.