Johannesburg — AFRICAN governments need to take control of their own maritime assets and create a co-ordinated policy framework to drive economic development as well as secure the marine environment, urges a new discussion document that has been drawn up by the Brenthurst Foundation.

In the document, entitled Maritime Development in Africa, the authors lament the fact that despite the importance of marine trade - with almost 91% of continental trade by volume being transported by sea in 2008 - Africa is the only major region in the world that does not have its own maritime policy or strategy.

"Africa has to begin to take the lead in controlling its own maritime domain," the document says. "There is an overriding need for a formalised legal framework at a continental level."

The authors claim that "once these resources are protected and exploited in a sustainable manner, downstream savings will justify any upstream investment.

"In other words, the cost of inaction is unaffordable."

The document, which its authors hope will eventually result in an overarching African maritime strategy, has been handed to African Union (AU) deputy chairman Erastus Mwencha for further discussion. "While the document is fairly superficial, we are hoping that this will be a step towards the eventual drafting of an African maritime strategy," retired Rear-Adm Steve Stead, one of the document's authors, said this week.

This paper was produced by the Brenthurst Foundation in partnership with the AU Commission and the African Centre for Strategic Studies in Washington.

The authors include retired Rear-Adm Stead, a former deputy director of the foundation; Dr Knox Chitiyo of the Royal United Services Institute in London; retired Capt Johan Potgieter at the Institute of Security Studies in Pretoria; and Prof Geoffrey Till of London's King's College.

The authors also highlight several issues that need to be addressed in drafting a new maritime strategy, including security concerns around piracy, illegal fishing and oil bunkering.

Inefficient and insecure ports and sub-optimal integration of road, rail, air and sea networks are highlighted as major growth challenges. There is also a need to protect the marine environment.

Read-Adm Stead stressed that while SA had a developed maritime infrastructure, it could not afford to isolate itself from the rest of the continent and had a key role in assisting nations develop and protect their maritime assets.