By: Dr. Ini Adiakpan
Mfon is a distinguished legal practitioner, maritime and international trade expert, author, corporate leader and development strategist whose career has been defined by pioneering leadership, institutional reform and service to Nigeria and Africa.
A woman of remarkable firsts, she was the pioneer Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and remains its first and only female Director-General. She later became the first and only female Secretary-General of the Abuja Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control, an intergovernmental organisation comprising 22 West and Central African states. Her leadership in these positions strengthened maritime safety, regulatory compliance, regional cooperation and Nigeria’s standing in the international maritime community.
As Managing Partner of Paul Usoro & Co, one of Nigeria’s leading law firms, Mfon has distinguished herself as a foremost maritime, environmental and trade lawyer.
Her influence extends beyond courtroom practice into law reform and institution-building. She led the drafting and legislative advocacy for landmark instruments including the NIMASA Act 2007, Coastal and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act 2003, Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria Act 2007, and major port, transport, environmental and trade-related Bills and regulations. In doing so, she helped translate legal expertise into frameworks for national economic development.
Her contribution to Nigeria’s transport sector is equally significant. She served as Chairperson and Draftswoman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee for the Finalization of the National Transport Policy, helping shape the policy framework for a more integrated and efficient national transport system. She currently brings this depth of experience to the development of the Ibom Deepsea Port and Ibom Industrial City as Chairperson of the Akwa Ibom State Government Technical Committee, contributing to a project with transformative potential for the state’s economy and its integration into global trade.
Mfon is also a formidable voice in international trade and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). She has served as Vice Chair of the International Bar Association’s Bar Issues Commission on International Trade in Legal Services, pioneered the Nigerian Bar Association’s AfCFTA Committee, and co-chairs the Policy, Regulations and Laws Workstream of Nigeria’s National Action Committee on AfCFTA. Her work continues to position legal and professional services as instruments of African economic integration.
Her intellectual contribution is reflected in over 100 papers and presentations on maritime law, Blue Economy, trade policy, transport logistics, environmental regulation and gender equity in infrastructure development.
In 2025, she added authorship to her accomplishments with International Trade and Carriage of Goods by Sea: Texts, Cases, and Materials, published by University of Lagos Press and Bookshop.
Her leadership extends to the boardroom and development institutions. She has served for 12 years each as an Independent Non-Executive Director of First City Monument Bank and The Infrastructure Bank, alongside responsibilities on boards and boards of trustees spanning maritime education, healthcare, business, sustainability, culture and the arts.
She is a Member of the Body of Benchers, a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport and a Fellow of the African Centre for Supply Chain.
Her distinguished service has earned her national and international recognition, including Chevalier de l’Ordre du Mérite Maritime of Côte d’Ivoire (2015), Officier de l’Ordre du Mono of Togo (2002), the Productivity Order of Merit Award of Akwa Ibom State (2022), and the Akwa Ibom State Merit Award (2006).
From the law she helped shape, to the institutions she helped build, and the infrastructure and policies she continues to influence, Mfon represents what purposeful expertise can achieve when matched with courage and vision.
Her journey from Calabar to the forefront of Nigeria’s maritime, legal, trade and infrastructure development is more than a story of personal success—it is a legacy of opening doors, building systems and creating pathways for those who will come after her.
She has not merely broken glass ceilings; she has helped redesign the rooms beyond them.Besides, she is, indeed, a trailblazer whose impact continues to sail beyond the shores of Nigeria.
Join me in acknowledging the impactful, transformative milestones of this legal authority to our ecosystem.
—Dr. Ini Adiakpan is a prominent Nigerian politician and educational technologist, currently serving as Akwa Ibom State’s Personal Representative on Women Affairs after previously holding office as the state’s Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare
