20% of ships in pirate-prone waters will have armed guards by 2013

Around 20% of ships in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, the epicentres of piracy, will carry armed guards by 2013, according to the Security Association for the Maritime Industry. This is an increase from 12% at present. 

The Security Association for the Maritime Industry represents a fifth of private security firms offering services to shipping companies in the area off the coast of Somalia, according to spokesman Peter Cook. He was speaking at a presentation in London this week.

“There is a wish by some shipowners to have armed guards on board and you can’t dispute the fact they are successful,” Andrew Bardot, secretary and executive officer of the International Group of P&I Clubs, which insures 90 percent of the world fleet against liability claims, told Bloomberg.

Read more