The new commandant, Armed Forces Command and Staff College (AFCSC), Air Vice-Marshal (AVM) Eko Efiom Osim, has assumed office.

In one of his first official engagements yesterday, Osim asked the Nigerian Navy to cooperate with all stakeholders to combat maritime security challenges in the country.

In his address at the Junior Course 74/2012, Department of Maritime Warfare Policing at AFCSC headquarters, Jaji, Kaduna, Osim said the seminar would provide the stakeholders and the students the opportunity to reappraise the activities of all sea users and generate discussion on issues relating to improved security in the maritime domain.

Osim further stated that the seminar was aimed at acquainting the students with the Nigerian Navy fleet operations, with emphasis on the policing role, and to state the necessity for collaboration between the Nigerian Army and other maritime stakeholders towards meeting the challenges in Nigeria's maritime domain.

Forty-five Nigerian Navy officers from the ranks of lieutenants and two civilians from the DSS and DIA participated in the seminar.

He said, "as the team of the students' operations visits the states, there is therefore a need to continuously cooperate with all stakeholders to combat contemporary maritime security challenges,"

Earlier, the director, Department of Maritime War (DMW), Navy Commodore Ati John, expressed the Navy's commitment to providing solutions to the current security challenges in the country.

Represented by the chief instructor in DMW, Navy Captain Chally Adewale, the director pledged that the service would combat maritime security challenges and improve its operations in collaboration with other stakeholders.