Date : 24 January 2017

In the last few days there has been much speculation in the media and online about the stability of the Sovereign Global Solutions Group given the recent decision the company has taken to terminate our floating armoury and maritime security logistics services in the Gulf of Oman and Red Sea.

Since 2009, Sovereign Global have provided a market leading service in this complex and very specialist field. As the first and premier operator in this space since inception and still to date, Sovereign Global is the only provider that has been fully regulated, approved and administered by a government entity (under a presidential decree). We have lobbied for the last 7 years for recognised international standards surrounding the control and monitoring mechanisms for the international storage and movement at sea of firearms, ammunition and associated ancillaries. Within the High-Risk Area (HRA) today, there are now many severely sub-standard providers of maritime security logistics services, who continue to regularly breach international embargoes, sanctions, local and national laws, compromising not only the livelihoods and well-being of the people they employ and serve, but also the security situation in some of the most unstable regions of the world. It is no secret that the maritime security market has seen a significant increase in the risk tolerance levels of many (not all) of the Private Maritime Security Companies (PMSC) and other logistics providers as they continue to reduce their fees for their services respectively, to win or sustain business. As many of you will know, at Sovereign Global we run a very comprehensive and assured operation which has legality, safety and quality at the core of all we do. This has always been underpinned by our ability to provide a reliable and transparent service where the conditions always ensure that Privately Contracted Armed Security Personnel (PCASP) are well nourished, well looked after and in a physical and mental state of wellbeing for conducting private maritime security operations in complex and hostile environments.  It is for these reasons we have had the direct support of the national government of Djibouti, who have pioneered the counter piracy effort in the region through various international initiatives supported by the International Maritime Organisation, including the very successful Djibouti Code of Conduct agreement, which incorporates more than 20 states in the region with the main objective of supressing piracy and armed robbery at sea.

Primarily we are a service provider and respected partner to many governments in Africa, Europe and the Middle East, and our clients continue to raise concerns about the increasing risks of weapons proliferation and diversion in the Horn of Africa region and the reputational risks that could be associated with a service supplier in that space. Despite our very best efforts and willingness to engage with many key stakeholders in both the maritime and security sector, the lack of appetite to regulate the floating armoury sector poses a significant risk to our business due to the number of other providers operating in an illicit, unsafe and often unethical manner. It is for the reasons mentioned above that the executive board of Sovereign Global Solutions have decided to terminate this service offering and focus our efforts on our core business of supporting sovereignty through Land, Air and Sea. The core of our unique enterprise has and will always be capacity building, enabling programmes, training, mentoring and equipping and these activities will continue to pave the way for the exciting future we continue to have ahead as one the leading complex environment programme managers globally.

Finally, we would also like to give a special thank you to our customers that continued to utilise our floating armoury services despite the deteriorating market conditions. They deserve to be recognised for their approach and support to ensuring their clients were always provided with a legal, transparent and professional service throughout their operations and service delivery.