COTONOU, Benin - Brigadier General Guys-Pierre Garcia, the lead planner for the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) delegation, co-signs a Communique along with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), to recommend that the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and Operational Agreement be submitted to the respective secretariats for eventual adoption by the states. The signing took place March 29 during the ECCAS and ECOWAS Maritime Safety and Security Conference in Cotonou, Benin, March 26-29, 2012. More than 250 representatives from more than 20 African nations attended the conference, which was held to facilitate cooperation between both African communities in order to provide regional maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea. The event was organized and facilitated by U.S. Africa Command and Africa Center for Strategic Studies. (U.S. AFRICOM photo by Adam Gramarossa)