Equatorial Guinea gains control of oil-rich islands in dispute with Gabon

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Monday ruled that Equatorial Guinea holds legal sovereignty over a cluster of small islands in the potentially oil-rich waters in the Gulf of Guinea.

This ruling marks the end of a decades-long territorial dispute with neighbouring Gabon and comes at a time when both Central African nations are rethinking their oil strategies.

The case, filed with the International Court of Justice in 2021, concerns the largely uninhabited Mbanie, Cocotiers, and Conga islands located just off Gabon’s Atlantic coast, according to a report by Reuters.

The Hague-based court ruled that sovereignty over Mbanié and the two neighbouring islands belongs to Equatorial Guinea.

In its ruling, the court stated that the 1974 agreement Gabon relied on to support its claim to the islands did not qualify as a legally binding treaty.

“The title that has the force of law in so far as it concerns sovereignty over the islands … is the title held by the Kingdom of Spain on 12 October 1968, to which the Republic of Equatorial Guinea succeeded,” it said.

In 1972, Gabon’s military expelled Equatorial Guinea’s forces from Mbanié and has since maintained its military presence on the virtually uninhabited island, which spans just 74 acres (30 hectares).

The ruling requires Gabon to withdraw its troops from the small island of Mbanié, which is less than a kilometre long and lies just off Gabon’s coast.