Several economic benefits have been documented for the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). This can only be realized when Nigeria creates a conductive socioeconomic, political, conflict-free, and insecurity-free environment – predominantly maritime piracy-free- a serious global issue that undermines trade. If this is not addressed, maritime piracy crime could adversely affect Nigeria’s successful implementation of the AfCFTA. There have been numerous studies on free trade agreements and maritime piracy, but few have examined how maritime piracy impacts such agreements. Therefore, this paper aims to contribute to the ongoing literature by exploring how maritime piracy might affect Nigeria’s implementation of AfCFTA. An analytic framework based on global anomie theory (GAT) and civic governance ideas guides this paper. Secondary materials are employed to analyze the theory and clarify how maritime piracy can affect Nigeria’s implementation of AfCFTA. Based on the AfCFTA protocols, which encourage Member States to take action regarding maritime piracy activities to ensure their security, this study suggests that the Nigerian government should not just focus on domestic anti-maritime piracy efforts and its regional cooperation mechanisms alone but also implement the AfCFTA agreement effectively by adopting an international cooperation mechanism.