The Gulf of Guinea is now one of the world’s most dangerous places for piracy as the number of ships hijacked there has more than doubled in the past year.
So West African states are meeting to ensure they can tackle the growing challenge in advance of the expected surge in oil and gas flows after reserves were discovered off Senegal and Mauritania’s waters.
As Al Jazeera’s Nicolas Haque reports from Dakar.
Guinea is a country in West Africa, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Formerly known as French Guinea (French: Guinée française), the modern country is sometimes referred to as Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from other countries with “Guinea” in the name.
It’s known for the Mount Nimba Strict Nature Reserve, in the southeast. The reserve protects a forested mountain range rich in native plants and animals, including chimpanzees and the viviparous toad. On the coast, the capital city, Conakry, is home to the modern Grand Mosque and the National Museum.
Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a country in Northwest Africa.
Approximately 90% of Mauritania’s land is within the Sahara; consequently, the population is concentrated in the south, where precipitation is slightly higher.
The capital and largest city is Nouakchott, located on the Atlantic coast, which is home to around one-third of the country’s 4 million people.
The country’s official religion is Islam, with almost the entire population being Sunni Muslims. Arabic is the official language, with French also widely used due to its colonial history.
Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is a country in West Africa. Senegal is bordered by Mauritania in the north, Mali to the east, Guinea to the southeast, and Guinea-Bissau to the southwest.
Like other post-colonial African states, the country includes a wide mix of ethnic and linguistic communities, with the largest being the Wolof, Fula, and Serer people, and the Wolof and French languages acting as lingua francas.
