| Summary: | The study of politics, or political science, focuses on both the abstract theories and<br />practical operation of government and politics. The phenomenon of piracy on the<br />east and west coasts of Africa brings an important scholarly issue to the fore, namely<br />the significant roles of non-state actors in national, regional and global issues and<br />politics. The phenomenon of maritime piracy along Africa’s coastal areas is indeed<br />of great strategic and political-economic interest − specifically since globalisation<br />and maritime trade show a close interface. This article examines the similarities and<br />differences relating to the phenomenon of piracy on the east and west coasts of<br />Africa from a Political Science perspective by assessing, interpreting and appraising<br />the phenomenon, and ascribing meaning to recent events and developments. It also<br />explains the current insecurity off the west and east African coasts and closes with a<br />brief comparison between the two regions under review. It concludes with the point<br />that most security challenges confronting Africa have their origin in the lack or<br />failure of governance as states are the primary actors and agents of good order at<br />sea. Thus the required good order at sea should be viewed as a function of how<br />states, such as Somalia and Nigeria, exercise their jurisdiction at sea to secure busy<br />sea lanes and also to protect the safe harvesting and extraction of resources.
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