According to MANA, The organisation's data show a fall of 58% in the year. Against 203 incidents in 2015, only 85 were reported in 2016. These comprised 80 armed robberies and 5 cases of piracy.
The straits of Malacca and Singapore saw the greatest reduction in the number of cases, going from 104 in 2015 to just 2 in 2016. ReCAAP ISC attributed this to the commitment by littoral states to clamp down on crime, as well as arrests made in 2015.
The latest data also show a sharp decline in the hijacking of ships for oil cargo theft, from a peak of 15 incidents in 2014 and 12 in 2015, to just 3 in 2016. This is likely to be a reflection of the change in international oil prices, Masafumi Kuroko, ReCAAP executive director told a 13 January media briefing in Singapore.
Earlier this week, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and ReCAAP jointly held a meeting and workshop for participants from Africa and Asia to foster closer links among anti-piracy contact points for “more effective information sharing and communication”.