Building on a Legacy of Vision and Excellence – THISDAYLIVE

In a remarkable journey marked by innovation, leadership, and an unwavering pursuit of greatness, Iroghama Ogbeifun has emerged as a shining star in the business world. As the Managing Director/CEO of Starzs Investments Company Limited, she has defied conventions and shattered glass ceilings, inspiring countless individuals along the way. This month of July, Iroghama marks a significant milestone – her 40th year of impactful living and leadership, with a legacy spanning decades. Iroghama’s story is one of passion, perseverance, and purpose. Building on a legacy of excellence established by her outstanding father, she has remained focused on creating a positive change that rubs off on several people across different sectors. With numerous awards and citations for her leadership, Ogbeifun has excelled in male-dominated sectors like maritime, energy, and oil & gas, driving her company’s growth while empowering women and girls through various initiatives. Remarkably, her expertise in the maritime sector wasn’t informed by her educational background, yet she is a respected thought leader, thus her appointment to NIMASA’s Governing Board by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on July 2, 2025, further validates her exceptional leadership and industry expertise. As she clocks 40, Ogbeifun, in this interview with MARY NNAH, shares her inspiring story, revealing the driving forces behind her success and vision for the future

As you clock this major milestone, what thoughts and feelings are you experiencing on your 40th birthday?

First of all, I feel a sense of great gratitude for being alive. And that is because I consider spending 40 years on earth as a remarkable landmark. I know a number of people, including classmates and friends, who were born in the same year but are no longer around. So, I don’t take being alive for granted, nor do I see it as a simple gesture. I see it as a privilege that God has preserved my life, and not only am I alive, but I am healthy and blessed with children. Also, my businesses are thriving, and I can impact lives; that is why I continue to count my blessings.

What struck you most upon realising that you were approaching the fourth floor?

It was the actual thought that I was going to be 40 soon. I was not afraid, and I won’t say that I felt any kind of pressure, but it made me pause and think. I was able to dwell on my accomplishments, especially thinking back to around 10 years ago. Looking back to the time, I couldn’t have imagined that I would be where I am today; particularly that I would have twin girls and be thriving as much as I am in the maritime industry, considering that that is not my background. And then all the myriads of businesses that I have had the privilege to set up, supermarkets, pharmaceutical stores and the number of salons I now have. They all represent a far cry from what the case was ten years ago. I wasn’t even plotting most of it, so what struck me most were the interesting twists and turns my life has taken in the last ten years as I realised I was actually approaching 40. It gave me an idea of what the future, especially the next ten years, could potentially look like.

An accomplished medical doctor mother and a shipping magnate father, what was it like growing up under their guidance and mentorship?

My parents’ impact no doubt had a significant influence on my life trajectory. My late Mum, Dr. Cecilia Ojezua, was an epitome of a role model; Smart, brilliant, and a go-getter.  Literarily, she was my mirror. Watching her removed every limiting belief that could have existed in my mind, especially as a girl-child, the cultural beliefs in which we live, in Nigeria, in Africa, and generally even in the world. Honestly, she prepared me to thrive in a male-dominated work environment because she showed me that anything was possible.  There was no vision or dream she set her mind to that she didn’t achieve. And she did it with so much grace, charisma, and ease.  Although she still faced many obstacles along the way. Against all odds, my mother achieved all her dreams by facing her goals and shoving aside distractors.

As for my dad, Sir Greg Ogbeifun, I consider him the Greatest of All Time in terms of vision, purpose and achievements. He is also my role model; my dad showed me what it meant to have a male ally.  When I was young, he never treated me preferentially because I was a female child and that has been very beneficial for me. From him, I learnt the importance and merit of hard work, along with the fact that there are consequences for every action. My father would always say life is choice-driven, and I also watched how he supported the women in his life. He allowed them to thrive in whatever role they desired while setting the stage and providing whatever support was needed to reach their potential. My dad showed me that men could support women to do well and chase their dreams. That showed me a different colour to life and also raised the bar for me. My father is also my mentor by setting the stage for me to do well and be successful. He provided quality education for me, both home and abroad and above all, he has allowed me to fly under his wings. I remember a mantra of his when we were in secondary school, to the effect that whatever you do in life, you do if for yourself. It was a piece of advice for us to take ownership of our failures or our successes. That was a defining moment for me and the words shaped my thinking and my commitment to succeed.

Your career in the maritime industry has been remarkable. What drives your passion for this sector, and how do you think it can be further developed in Nigeria?

For me, the driving force, first of all, was coming in to sustain the family business. It is not that I have the core technical expertise; for instance, I am not an engineer, a marine engineer or in a field related to such expertise. But I did have the ability to take the vision of the founder, who is my father, and try to amplify it. And I think we have managed to do that in the last 11 years, growing the business in leaps and bounds, even taking it beyond the shores of Nigeria. And on how the industry at large can be propelled, first of all, it is wonderful what the current administration under the amiable President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has done already, which was creating the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy. This is a dedicated ministry for the sector, we have never had that in the past, so having a ministry concerned with the affairs of the industry and championing various policies and objectives to create an enabling environment for the industry to grow is great. Now, there is also the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA), which Nigeria can very easily take great advantage of. We have the population, we have the resources, and it is an agreement that encourages intra-African trade. Most trade transactions, even at the global level, are facilitated by maritime transport, and Nigeria is a maritime nation. So, the opportunity for us to facilitate regional and cross-continental trade between African countries is also there. I know that there are a few other initiatives which the ministry is working on, for example, financing structure. The Africa Regional Maritime and Regional Development Bank was established a few years ago but it became moribund after sometime but now, they have just recruited a very competent CEO and we are hoping that with his emergence, we will see the bank begin to create a financing platform for African or Nigerian companies to take advantage of and grow their fleet, which will now grow regional trade in Africa.

What is Cabotage Fund (CVFF Fund) all about, and how do you think it can help indigenous shipping owners in Nigeria?

The Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) was established, and its purpose is to enable and promote indigenous vessel ownership through vessel acquisition and maritime asset financing in line with the Cabotage Act. The Act has four pillars: the vessel must be owned by Nigerians. It must be built in Nigeria. It must be flagged Nigerian. And it must be manned by Nigerians. So, the CVFFund was set up to facilitate the bit of the vessel being built and owned by Nigerians. So obviously, you need money to buy a ship, even if you’re buying it from abroad. And, you also need money to set up a shipyard that can build those boats. So that way, the buying and the ownership, the Nigerian ownership, and the Nigerian building pillars of the Cabotage Act could be fulfilled. That is what the CVFF was set up for. To build the fund, NIMASA charges 2% on all maritime activity that takes place within the Nigerian coastal waters. Since the Cabotage Act was enacted in 2003, which is 22 years ago, we have had no luck in the disbursement of a penny from that fund. However, under the current leadership of Honourable Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, it seems that the jinx might be broken as he has secured the approval of Mr. President for the disbursement of CVFF to qualifying beneficiaries. While there are still some grey areas around the workability of the fund disbursement, it is encouraging to note that at least the process has commenced. As stakeholders, we are keeping a very close eye on it and I believe that the Honourable Minister is committed to ensuring that he finally breaks this jinx of the CVFF disbursement.

You are a strong advocate for women in the energy sector. What initiatives have you found most impactful in promoting women’s empowerment, and how do you see this movement evolving in the future?

I discuss women empowerment from two angles. One is regarding my broader activities within this industry through associations that I am a member of. And then, of course, there are the personal activities that I am driving through a platform that I have influence over, which is my company. So, I am a founding member of Women in Energy Network, and really what the network does is to shine a light on the number of women that are actively participating within the industry, from professional and business standpoints.

So, we become advocates for advancing women in leadership positions within the industry, advocates for securing a quota for female contractors within oil companies in the industry. And then also, more importantly, feeding the funnel, because if you don’t have more female STEM students; science, technology and mathematics students, you are not going to have women who are emerging as engineers, as scientists, surveyors and things like that. You are not going to have them coming into the industry, because right from secondary school, they are already dropping out of those science-related courses.

We are taking the message to secondary schools and providing sponsorship towards the establishment of STEM labs in schools, supporting some girls for graduate internships within oil companies, so they can also build their resumes and become eligible to seek work in the broader energy industry.

So, that is really what the Women in Energy Network has been doing for the last five years. I am currently the sponsorship director of the network and I participate in most of these initiatives as well. That is on a broader level, we also come out with an industry report every two years that just sort of educates the industry on the gender report, showing what is happening from a gender perspective within the industry.

Then for STARZS, the maritime company I lead, even though we are operating within the energy industry, and we own vessels, we create an avenue to employ female officers, or have a quota. And we also create an avenue to train, because like I said, if you don’t feed the funnel, you just wake up one day and discover there are no female officers to even employ. So, you have to ensure that you are creating that funnel for the children to go to school and become qualified seafarers. And then for them to be able to come in after school to get their 12-month sea time on board a ship, after which they can now qualify to become officers that can work on board the vessels. So, we start with the scholarships.

We have a scholarship programme that we do every two years and our scholarships take you to a maritime institution. We don’t do scholarships for other disciplines. If you benefit from our scholarship, it means that you are ready to go and study a maritime-related course. We send you preferably to Maritime Academy, Oron in Akwa Ibom State. And then of course, we have our cadetship, a very robust cadetship programme that runs every two years, where out of 14 slots, we give four dedicated slots to female cadets, so they are guaranteed sea time, training time on board a ship.

And then I am also the chairman of the technical committee, which means while I am doing that in my own sphere of influence in my company, I am also evangelising to other ship-owners to be intentional about creating opportunities for women to come on board and qualify both as officers who are earning a salary or even for training as cadets to enable them to go on to become officers. That evangelism is on and I think we are partnering with a couple of other women maritime organisations to drive the message louder on a larger scale platform. 

As a serial entrepreneur, what inspires you to start new ventures and how do you balance the risks and rewards of entrepreneurship?

What inspires me is opportunity. I have an eye for opportunities, so when I see an opportunity, I go for it. I am always about my business providing a solution to a need or solving a problem? And the number of people who are willing to pay for that problem, are they sufficient to help us make a profit? If the answer to both is yes, then I am jumping in. And that is why I do businesses that require capital that is somewhat within my reach. The second part of the question relates to balancing risks and rewards. While I am balancing the risk by investing at the onset with my own cash, I am taking the risk and betting on myself. And then, I am taking the reward as well. And then if it goes well, at least I have been approached by banks who are willing to help me scale up very quickly.

So, I am trying to build a structure but I recognise that to scale quickly, I need to build a structure that can handle that level of scaling and I am in that structure-building phase. And once the structure is in place, I will be willing to then take on greater risk by, maybe, having a bank sponsor our rapid growth. 

You have received numerous awards and recognitions for your work. How do you stay motivated and continue striving for excellence?

I see that representation matters and that keeps me on my toes. Representation means that if I slack, it affects the number of women in the field because we don’t have a lot of women. There are not so many of us, and we need to have more women, especially those who are willing to share their incredible stories for other women to see and for young girls to see what is possible. That in itself keeps me in my best shape. So, if my businesses are not enough to keep me motivated, then knowing that there is a young girl out there that needs to hear my story or who needs to encounter my testimony keeps me going.  And I know that if I slack, then I am not going to have those testimonies for them to feel motivated. So, that definitely keeps me going even beyond anything else. Representation, that I need to be part of showing young girls that it is indeed possible. 

What advice would you give to young women who aspire to pursue careers in a male-dominated industry like maritime and energy?

Well, the first advice I give to them is not to see it as a male-dominated industry. When I walk into a room, I don’t see gender. What I see are either business partners or counterparts or colleagues or friends. And if they happen to be male or female, then so be it. So, when I walk into a boardroom or I am part of a negotiation discussion, I am not checking whether I’m speaking to a man or a woman. I focus on the contribution, value or objective of being in the room and that mindset is the beginning. What kind of mindset do you have? Once you walk in and you are thinking: ‘Oh, I am a woman, I am the only woman here,’ you are already so engrossed that you become so self-conscious. You probably are not able to bring your best foot forward. I would urge a change of mindset to the point of just seeing them as human beings, just like you. They are human beings, just like you are a human being and focus more on the value that you are bringing to the table.

Also, constantly see and ask yourself: ‘what value am I bringing to the table?’ And such a value will not be created in a vacuum, you have to grow, learn and be mentored. You need to expose yourself to experiences that will help you to learn so that your value increases. If you focus on excellence and on being an expert in your field, on being invaluable to whichever organisation or circumstance you find yourself in, then you will definitely be a value-adding woman. Am I saying that there are no limitations? Of course, those limitations exist. But I am saying that, first of all, let us conquer the limitations in our minds because if we don’t conquer those, there is no way we can conquer the ones that we are going to face out there in the world.

As you look to the future, what are your goals and aspirations, both personally and professionally?

As I look to the future, I think for personal goals, I would like to do more organised charity as I get older. In any shape or form, maybe not necessarily a foundation, I don’t know yet, but I know that I would definitely like my charity, whether it’s mentorship or general giving, in a more structured and sustainable way. I will be looking at what sort of platforms are available to me to achieve that. On a personal level, there are other personal self-development goals that I have set for myself. From a professional business standpoint, I would definitely like to grow my businesses further. I mean, 40 for me is like stepping into a new lease of life.

I don’t see age as a factor that slows one down; I see it more like it’s another launch pad to another level. And I am hoping that I am able to channel that energy to take my existing businesses to higher heights. So, 10 years from now, when we have this conversation again, I can look and be happy that I have been able to keep up with the story of momentum, growth and expansion.