Show interest in Maritime Industry, Law Students advised

Tayo Oladipupo |

The Group Executive Vice Chairman of Sifax Group, Dr Taiwo Afolabi has emphasized the need to deepen the knowledge base and to stimulate the interest of law students in maritime industry.

This according to the statement made available to journalists in Lagos by the General Manager, Corporate Affairs of the organisation, Muyiwa Akande, prompted the sponsorship of annual debate on topical issues about the industry which third edition held recently.

Dr. Afolabi made the statement at the third edition of the annual Maritime Blueprint Competition in which law students from six universities participated.

He said, “We don’t have enough maritime legal experts in the industry as I speak to you. Very few students also show interests in the legal aspect of the sector. Having identified this, the company decided to take up the sponsorship of the competition.

“We believe that this gesture would go a long way in stimulating interest of students in maritime law. I am personally leading the mentorship charge because as a lawyer, I have experienced first-hand the many opportunities inherent in the application of law to the maritime sector.

“We are also doing this because at SIFAX Group, it’s part of our corporate philosophy to positively affect the society,” he said.

Meanwhile, Bowen University, Iwo, Osun state emerged overall winner of the Maritime Blueprint Competition with 85 points; while University of Lagos (UNILAG) trailed second with 81 points as Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado Ekiti came third with 78 points.

The competition, sponsored by SIFAX Group, is one of the activities of the Taiwo Afolabi Annual Maritime Conference, which is in its third edition and held in partnership with the Maritime Forum of the Faculty of Law, University of Lagos.

According to the statement, at the end of the keenly-contested competition, which used a debate format, Bowen University, Iwo, represented by Adekeye Olanrewaju and Dunmade Samuel emerged the overall winner with 85 points while University of Lagos represented by Pius Bankong and Ipinnuoluwa Ade-Ademi and Ekiti State University by Durola Ayobami Tosin and Oyewole Sunday came second and third respectively with 81 and 78 points.

Other schools that participated were University of Benin, University of Ilorin and Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

The first round of the debate was on the merits and demerits of foreign direct investments in the maritime sector.

The final round of the debate was on “Port Costs & Port Charges: A Recurring Decimal Under Port Reform Regime.”

Mouth-watering prizes including laptops, smart phones and cash were given to the winners.