Ademuni Odeke

Ademun-Odeke is a British academic; a Lloyds of London-Fulbright Scholar; Professor of International Maritime Law and Policy and Special Advisor to the National Research Centre for the Sea and Maritime Law (DEHUKAM); Visiting Professor at Tulane (US), IMLI (Malta) and formerly WMU (Malmo). He has taught at several English, Scottish, Irish, and European universities. He holds an LLM in Maritime Law and a PhD in International Shipping Law and Policy, Institute of Maritime Law, the University of Southampton, UK.

Founder and CEO of Bahari Maritime Consultants, he has, prior to academia, worked for a regional shipping establishment and a regional ports’ management corporation, respectively. He later served for 15 years at the UN with the IMO (London), IAEA (Vienna) and HQRS (NY), before retiring and returning to academia and consultancy. Author of several books, articles, and consultancy reports and edited numerous conference proceedings, he is widely travelled, has lived and taught in several jurisdictions in Africa, Canada, Continental Europe, England, Ireland, Scotland, USA, and Türkiye 

In consultancy, he conducted numerous Fact Finding; Needs Assessments; Advisory; Legislative Drafting; and Consultancy Missions on Technical Assistance and Sectoral Support for Developing Countries and Emerging Markets for over 35 years the UN, international organizations and states. Those assignments have included advising on restrictive shipping practices; modalities for national maritime fleets; maritime safety administrations; ship registration; and drafting merchant shipping statutes, enabling secondary legislation for ratification of maritime conventions, agreements, and treaties as well as accompanying regulations and rules for several recipient countries. His continuing consultancy assignments, include training judges, prosecutors, defence and prosecuting attorneys, naval police, naval personnel, and maritime administrators in Eastern and Western Africa on the Law of the Sea and international criminal jurisdiction over pirates. His interests include Piracy, Maritime Security, International Trade Law, Marine and Export Credit Insurance, WTO Law, the Blue Economy and Anglo-America Law. 

He holds several Visiting Professorships, Distinguished Academic Fellowships, International Merit Awards and membership of international and professional organisations: Institute of Exports, Nautical Institute, Law of the Sea Institute, Society of Legal Scholars, Comite Maritime Internationale (UK and Ireland National Committees), British Institute of International and Comparative Law, American Institute of International and Comparative Law and African Studies Association (US). He is the founder and Board member of UK and based African Educational and Development Charities. 

A keen amateur golfer and rambler, he loves international affairs, volunteering, classical music, theatre, and travels.