The Maritime and Offshore Award (The OMIS) has unveiled an international panel of judges for its inaugural edition.
Chief Executive Officer of the The OMIS Award, Femi Da-silva disclosed this in a statement released on Tuesday in Lagos.
He said that the four-member panel comprising maritime experts from Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Egypt and Greece was to increase the credibility of the award and ensure only the most qualified nominees win.
Da-silva identified the judges as: Dr. Ify Akerele, a Nigerian and pioneer Director General of the Nigerian Chamber of Shipping (NCS); Colonel Barthélemy Blédé, an Ivorian maritime expert currently serving as Liaison Officer with the Regional Centre for Maritime Safety and Security in West Africa (CRESMAO); Mohamed Tayel, an Egyptian subsea Integrity Engineer with more than 20 years’ experience; and Christos Michalopoulos, a Greek Naval Architect and ISPS Lead Auditor.
Dr. Akerele is a former President of the Women in Shipping & Trade Association (WISTA), and an Ambassador for Women in Maritime Africa, WIMA (an AU affiliate and United Nations Non-Governmental Organization member). Chairman of the NESG’s Sectoral Maritime Working Group, she is a member of the Sectorial Working Group (SWG) on maritime matters of the Nigeria Contents Consultative Forum (NCCF) of the NCDMB; Member, Advisory Board of Maritime Arbitration Association of Nigeria (MAAN) and Member of numerous gender-biased community development projects.
Col. Blédé is Administrator of maritime and port affairs and has held important positions in his country, Côte d’Ivoire, in particular those of Deputy Director and Project Manager for the implementation of the ISPS Code at the Port of Abidjan from 2004 to 2011 and Adviser to the Director General of Maritime and Port Affairs. He was a Senior Researcher at the Dakar office of the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) from 2014 to 2017, from where he published several articles and analytical notes on maritime safety and security in the Gulf of Guinea.
Engr. Tayel is a Lead Auditor with an MBA in Project Management with other certifications which include CSWIP 3.4u underwater inspection TWI north, Middlesbrough, UK., LEEA Level (II) Lifting Equipment Inspection Engineer, NEBOSH IGC Certificate, IOSH Managing Safely Certificate, Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems Lead Auditor IRCA, Fire and Industrial Safety Diploma among others. He is also a member of International Association of Maritime Consultants and Surveyors; Member of Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO); Associate Member of Fédération Internationale Experts & Conseils Maritimes – International Marine Accredited Surveyors Association (FIEM, IMASA); Associate Member, International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (INTERCARGO), among others.
Michalopoulos is the Principal Surveyor / Auditor for International Register of Shipping Classification Society and the Managing Director, Global Maritime Consultants Group (GMCG). He is a young energetic professional who is the youngest to ever hold the position of Managing Director in GMCG.
Da-silva explained that the award was conceived to recognise and celebrate excellence in the maritime and offshore sector.
He urged stakeholders to nominate deserving maritime practitioners and organisations in the 15 categories open for nomination on the award website.
The OMIS Award boss equally announced a two-week extension to the nomination deadline for the award.
He said that the organising committee deemed an extension necessary to give ample time for more nominees to join the already swelling nomination pool.
Da-silva said, “More than 300 nominations have been received so far since the nomination process commenced in the first week of March on www.theomisaward.com.
“However, we have been getting calls and messages from many stakeholders requesting an extension. Many of those that reached us said that they learnt about the award late and would like more time to be able to nominate.
“The organising committee deliberated on the requests and thought it wise to extend nomination by two weeks.”
He added that nomination now ends on April 15.
The Award Gala is slated for July 16 at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos.