Senior Advocate of Nigeria and President of the Nigerian Maritime Law Association (NMLA), Mrs. Funke Agbor, has called for a radical shift in how gender inclusion is approached in the Nigerian maritime and shipping industry.
Speaking at the 4th edition of the Women in Maritime and Shipping Conference, Agbor urged both regulators and industry players to adopt a system of structured incentives and enforceable sanctions to promote equity and eliminate harassment and discrimination in the sector.
The conference, organised by the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping (NCS), held in Lagos with the theme “Charting New Waters: Women Steering Progress in Maritime and Shipping,” drew attention to the persistent gaps in female representation and the urgent need for change.
In her presentation, Agbor maintained that gender inclusion must move beyond lip service and tokenism, insisting that meaningful transformation would require deliberate and measurable actions from maritime regulators and operators alike.
“There must be real consequences for organisations that ignore gender equity or allow a culture of harassment to thrive. At the same time, we should reward those who are intentional about inclusion,” she said. “NIMASA and other regulators can begin to incentivize companies by tying gender representation to regulatory assessments. Let companies know that diversity isn’t just good ethics—it’s a requirement.”
Agbor further recommended that regulators adopt a policy of transparency by publicly ranking maritime organisations based on their gender inclusion efforts. She also challenged firms, especially unlisted companies, to open up about their board compositions and employment practices.
“For listed firms, Corporate Governance codes already demand some level of gender diversity. But what about the thousands of other players in the industry? How many women are on their boards? What deliberate strategies are they deploying? These are the questions we must start asking,” she said.
Agbor also criticized the culture of silence that often surrounds gender-based harassment and discrimination, warning that the continued neglect of these issues will only entrench inequality and discourage aspiring female professionals from pursuing maritime careers.
President of the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping, Mr. Aminu Umar, in his welcome address, shared a personal story of hiring a woman for an administrative role who later expressed her desire to work on ship engines. Moved by her determination, his company recruited its first two female cadets in 2017. Today, more than 20 women are either working aboard Sea Transport vessels or progressing through the company’s training pipeline.
Supporting Agbor’s stance, President of Women in Maritime Organisations of West and Central Africa (WIMOWCA), Barr. (Mrs.) Oritematosan Edodo-Emore, advocated for the implementation of African Union charters that support the development of women. She called for greater female participation in maritime administration and the Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping (STCW), citing her visit to the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron, where she found female enrolment disappointingly low despite state-of-the-art facilities.
Head of Administration at the Abuja MoU on Port State Control, Ms. Elozino Eteghrara, also proposed a quota system for female recruitment into the maritime workforce, aligning with international best practices already adopted by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO). She further suggested that access to strategic industry funds like the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) could be tied to companies’ gender inclusion metrics.
The conference, held to commemorate the IMO-designated International Day for Women in Maritime on May 18th, also featured remarks from the Director General of NCS, Mrs. Vivian Chimezie-Azubuike, who highlighted the chamber’s efforts to drive practical outcomes from such engagements. She noted that past conferences have influenced broader regulatory discussions at the IMO level, including issues around mental health and seafarer safety.
Notable speakers at the event included Mrs. Gloria Kanabe (Nigeria’s Continental Representative at WIMAFRICA), Dr. (Mrs.) Felicia Mogo (President, African Marine Environment Sustainability Initiative), Mrs. Rollens Macfoy (President, WIMA Nigeria), Iroghama Ogbeifun (Managing Director, Starz Investment Limited), and Dr. (Mrs.) Chizoba Anyika (Chairperson, Advisory Board, WIME Awards).
With Agbor’s firm call for accountability ringing loud, the conference concluded with a shared resolve to dismantle the structural and cultural barriers that hinder women’s progress in Nigeria’s maritime space.
