US flags port security gaps in Cameroon and Madagascar

The action, published in the Federal Register under Docket No. USCG-2025-0097, invokes the authority granted under the Maritime Transportation Security Act — the landmark law enacted in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks to tighten the chain of security across the global shipping network. Under that statute, the Coast Guard may impose conditions of entry on any vessel arriving in American waters from a port determined not to maintain effective antiterrorism measures.

In practical terms, ships that have called at an affected port in Cameroon or Madagascar will now be subject to additional inspections and documentation requirements before they are cleared to dock anywhere along the United States coastline. Operators who fail to comply risk being denied entry or ordered to divert entirely — a significant financial and logistical penalty in an industry where schedule reliability translates directly to profit and loss.

Without proper oversight, exempted facilities may lack the necessary approvals, enforcement mechanisms, and broader security coordination — increasing vulnerabilities to the marine transportation system.
— US Coast Guard, Federal Register Notice 2026-02721

Ships face enhanced scrutiny before US port entry

The Coast Guard defined the minimum threshold for compliance as a suite of government-led functions: systematic risk assessments at port facilities, regular security drills, active enforcement of access controls, and structured intelligence-sharing arrangements with relevant national authorities. According to the agency’s notice, neither Cameroon nor Madagascar currently meets that standard, placing both countries on a growing list of nations assessed as failing to maintain effective antiterrorism measures at their port facilities — a roster that now spans 23 countries across Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and the Pacific.

Iraq was also included in the same revocation notice, bringing added attention to the broader pattern of deficiencies the United States has identified across strategically significant maritime regions. The full list of non-compliant nations now includes Cambodia, Comoros, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Iran, Libya, Micronesia, Nauru, Nigeria, North Korea, São Tomé and Príncipe, Seychelles, Sudan, Suriname, Syria, Timor-Leste, Venezuela, and Yemen — underscoring that the challenge of port security compliance under the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code remains a deeply unresolved global problem.

Douala and Toamasina under the spotlight

The announcement arrives at a particularly sensitive moment for both nations. Cameroon’s principal commercial gateway, the Port of Douala, is one of Central Africa’s most trafficked maritime hubs, serving as a critical logistics artery for landlocked neighbors including Chad and the Central African Republic. In the Gulf of Guinea — where Douala sits — piracy incidents continued to be recorded throughout 2025, with armed groups boarding vessels in open waters before they even reached port, compounding the existing security landscape on shore.

Madagascar, meanwhile, had appeared to be moving toward greater compliance. In August 2025, the International Maritime Organization led a five-day training program in Toamasina — the island nation’s chief commercial port — specifically designed to help Port Facility Security Officers identify vulnerabilities, develop standardized operating procedures, and align local practices with the requirements of the ISPS Code and the Safety of Life at Sea Convention. The IMO initiative was described as part of broader efforts to bring Madagascar’s port infrastructure up to internationally recognized standards. Yet Washington’s decision to revoke the exemption suggests those efforts had not yet translated into the kind of systemic, government-backed oversight the United States requires.

Pressure and partnership: a dual US approach

Even as Washington tightens its maritime security demands, other arms of the US government are simultaneously deepening cooperation with Antananarivo on the water. The Cutlass Express 2026 exercise, coordinated by US Africa Command and involving 19 African nations including Madagascar, was launched this month to strengthen maritime domain awareness and regional maritime law enforcement capacity — a juxtaposition that illustrates how American policy on the continent can simultaneously apply pressure and offer partnership.

For shipping operators and freight forwarders with regular services touching West or East Africa, the immediate practical implication is a recalibration of vessel documentation workflows and the likelihood of additional inspection time at US entry points. Industry analysts note that the compliance burden will fall most heavily on carriers operating multi-port itineraries across the affected regions, where a single call at a flagged facility can trigger requirements along an entire voyage chain.

Path to restoration remains open

The Cameroonian and Malagasy governments have not issued official public responses to the US Federal Register notice. Both countries have a clear pathway to restoration: demonstrating to the Coast Guard’s International Port Security Program that effective antiterrorism measures are in place can reverse a country’s status and reinstate normal vessel treatment at American ports.

Until that threshold is met, however, every ship departing Douala or Toamasina bound for the United States will carry the weight of Washington’s unresolved security concerns across the Atlantic or the Pacific — and face the consequences upon arrival.