Dr Paul Adalikwu, Secretary General of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa (MOWCA) has been reelected to head the 25 member country organisation for a renewed term of four years.
Adalikwu’s reelection which was a fallout from the just concluded 19th General Assembly of the organisation held in Banjul, The Gambia ,was a unanimous decision of the organisation.
His emergence followed endorsements by leadership of member countries delegations who took turns to commend Adalikwu for ground breaking transformations in the 50 year old body.He was unanimously voted for at the General Assembly of MOWCA Ministers on February 19, 2026.
MOWCA Chairman and Minister of Transport, Works and Infrastructure of the Republic of The Gambia who spoke after Adalikwu’s victory, congratulated the SG on his renewed mandate stating that his re-election is truly deserved and on merit.
According to him, Adalikwu has reinforced the importance of West and Central African countries to the global maritime ecosystem through strategic engagements with other stakeholders within and outside the continent of Africa.
He further described MOWCA under Adalikwu’s leadership as a rising multilateral organisation raising awareness on maximising the underutilised and untapped potentials of the region’s vast maritime coastline.
Gambian Minister of Minister of Transport, Works and Infrastructure,Mr Ebrima Sillah, said under Adalikwu’s leadership, MOWCA advanced significantly in regional maritime integration, security, capacity building, and sustainable development across it’s member states.
Ghana’s Minister of Transportation,Hon. Joseph Bukari Nikpe praised Adalikwu as a leader with exceptional qualities whose achievements in the five decade old organisation are evident.
Hon Nikpe said issues about maritime trade are central to import and export and therefore should be treated with the kind of seriousness Adalikwu has brought into running MOWCA.
According to him, member countries level of awareness and involvement in MOWCA and other international activities have grown since Adalikwu first emerged as SG some four years ago.
He added that Ghana is now more committed to adding value to export by providing fifty percent of her raw materials like cocoa beans to the Ghana business community for processing into chocolate unlike in the past when they were exported raw.
Dr Adalikwu reassured all member countries of MOWCA of pursuing an agenda for cost effective and environmentally sustainable shipping while promoting an African blue economy drive to achieve greater economic development and diversification.
He promised greater Inclusivity and mass participation of all African coastal and land linked countries in maritime matters. According to him MOWCA would continually provide technical support to all countries with potentials for seaport activities and for the establishment of dry ports in different parts of the continent for land linked countries.
The SG promised to sustain the push for MOWCA’s transformation into the broader African Maritime Organisation (AMO) to unify Africa’s voice on maritime issues globally.
This , according to him would create a common front and strong Africa voice in global maritime issues.
In the last four years, MOWCA interface with member countries have resulted in
maritime security improvement in the Gulf of Guinea. He strengthened implementation of the Yaoundé Architecture for regional cooperation, promoted the ISPS Code adoption, naval equipment acquisition, and community intelligence engagement.
Dr Adalikwu also advanced the CINFOCOM (Centre for Information and Communication) initiative for real-time security information sharing, contributing to reduced piracy at a level of near-zero incidents reported by the International Maritime Bureau in some periods.
MOWCA endorsed models like Nigeria’s SPOMO Act (Suppression of Piracy and Other Maritime Offences) for potential regional adoption, and supported successes in prosecuting maritime criminals in countries like Nigeria and Togo.
On human capital development and international partnerships, his efforts secured a $1.3 million agreement with the Indonesian government to train 96 seafarers from MOWCA member states, boosting skills and employability.
He also strengthened ties with global bodies like the IMO including signing an MoUand facilitated collaborations for professional training and blue economy growth.
Adalikwu worked for the establishment of the Regional Maritime Development Bank (RMDB) to fund sustainable shipping and port infrastructure. An initiative that has been stagnated at the level of conceptualizing over a decade before he was first elelected
He is also promoting initiatives like the Regional Maritime Fund, Integrated Sub-Regional Coast Guard Network to combat illegal activities at sea, Regional Transport Observatory for information dissemination, Regional Maritime Code for harmonising legislation, empowerment of merchant marines/maritime administrations, and a regional cabotage shipping company to boost intra-African trade.
He was recently named as Africa’s Most Influential Maritime Personality in 2025 by JournalNG magazine for transforming MOWCA into a regional maritime powerhouse,positioning MOWCA as a unifying force for Africa’s maritime future aligned with AfCFTA goals
His leadership has emphasised strategic reforms and partnerships with focus at addressing challenges like underfunded maritime infrastructure, low ship ownership, and foreign dominance in the African maritime space .
Dr Adalikwu is an advocate for a continent wide cabotage regime that would give African maritime investors and professionals the right of first choice in job opportunities and maritime related entrepreneurship.
The 19th General Assembly which also coincided with the organisation’s 50th anniversary featured the election of Counsel Olimatou Danso Malang, Director General of the Gambia Maritime Administration as the Chairman MOWCA Group of Experts from 2026 to 2028.
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