 Now, the chief of naval staff, Vice Admiral Awol Gambo, has flagged off the 2022 Operation Obagame Express. It's aimed at improving security among naval forces of the Gulf of Guinea and allied countries. The exercise took place aboard the Nigerian Navy ship Annenes Thunder, the only port in the local government area of River State. The report. Exercise Obagame Express is part of efforts to protect the maritime sector of the economy for sustainable use of the resources and effective security of maritime trade. The chief of naval staff, Vice Admiral Awol Gambo, set the exercises designed to improve operational readiness. It also promotes maritime domain awareness, information sharing practices, and tactical interdiction expertise of the Navy. The exercise is designed to improve regional collaboration through joint operations, intelligence sharing and harmonized legal frameworks to enhance the collective capabilities of Gulf of Guinea nations against maritime crimes. The naval chief said it is instructive considering efforts of the federal government at operationalizing the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement. According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the African Continental Free Trade Area has the potential to boost intra-African trade by 33 percent and cut the continent's trade deficit by 21 percent. It is thus envisaged that Nigeria and indeed the Nigerian Navy would provide a lead role in this regard. Vice Admiral Gambo commanded the United States government through the U.S. Africa Command and other international partners for facilitating and sustaining the exercise. He expressed hope that this year's exercise will achieve the target of ensuring security at several waterways among the Gulf of Guinea nations. The flag officer commanding Central Naval Command is Rear Admiral E.D. Abbas. He assured that the exercise will keep businesses alive and provide the impetus for enhanced overall maritime safety. Exercise Obangami Express 2022 presents that ample opportunity for the Nigerian Navy to work together with other regional and friendly foreign navies in the spirit of the Yawande Agreement. The exercise will aim to create a safe and secure maritime environment for shipping and other economic activities through the prevention of piracy, sea robbery, crude oil theft, illegal bunkering and other forms of criminalities within our maritime domain. Partementally, in all, 24 friendly forces will participate with representatives of the agencies like the U.S. Africa Command. So you get notified about fresh news updates.