Maritime Safety and Security: The Potential Role of Private Security Companies

Abstract

This paper assesses the role of private security companies in maritime safety and security. Specifically, the paper assesses the potential of the private security industry, the role it can play and possible impediments to address to improve its effectiveness in maritime safety and security. The paper adopts an exploratory research design, in a qualitative study that applied documentary research supplemented by interviews with six experts selected using the criterion sampling method. The study claims that private security companies (PSCs) have a critical role to play in enhancing maritime safety and security in the region through the sharing of intelligence information, providing escort and logistical support to vessels, capacity building to operators of marine security, assisting in rescue, negotiating ransom and enactment of policies. Experts opined that PSCs need to be properly registered and certified against several international standards reviewed in this paper. The study established impediments including capacity of actors, regulatory challenges, and mandate. This paper concludes that whereas there are challenges in optimizing the role of the private security industry, the players can surmount these by getting organised and engaged, with support from key governments and international organisations, and hence the efforts will be focused, efficient and effective in improving maritime safety and security. It, therefore, recommends that a licensing process and regime be established regionally to support the PSCs, the officers and PSCs be assisted in building capacity for marine security and policy and regulatory frameworks be set for arming vessels.