ACCRA, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo on Tuesday launched the National Integrated Maritime Strategy (NIMS) to boost the protection of its territorial waters.

Akufo-Addo launched the strategy while opening the two-day International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference in Accra, the Ghanaian capital.

The president said protecting the territorial waters of Ghana is critical due to its economic, environmental, and security importance.

Moreover, he said in the face of the maritime threats in the Gulf of Guinea, the country needs a navy that is up to protect Ghana's territorial waters as well as business and security interests.

To achieve that, he said the government recognized the need for a well-resourced and technologically advanced navy, adding that the country has started equipping the navy with drones, coastal radars, real-time surveillance, and tracking protocols to improve its physical presence at sea.

The president pledged that the government will increase the fleet of patrol boats of the country's navy to improve operational efficiency.

The construction of naval infrastructure is on the course, and the government will continue with this naval infrastructure construction policy to improve the navy's maritime response time, the president said.

"The government will continue supporting the maritime authority, ports and harbors authority, the fisheries sector, the oil and gas sector, and the entire maritime industry with policies, equipment, training, and resources as part of maritime security capacity building to protect and develop the blue economy," he added. Enditem

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