South African troops will be deployed to counter piracy in the Indian Ocean for another year, at a cost of more than R150 million.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has extended the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to fulfil South Africa's "international obligation" to Southern African Development Community (SADC) maritime security, Parliament said in a statement on Friday.
"The [deployment] is to counter the threat of piracy and other related illegal activities in the Indian Ocean," the statement read.
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The deployment has been extended from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.
The statement read:
The troops were first deployed in 2011, after a series of piracy attacks off the coast of Mozambique. The patrols by South Africa's navy will help reduce incidents of piracy around southern Africa.
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