The Institute of Competition and Antitrust Practitioners (ICAP) has formally unveiled its professional body and inducted its pioneer Foundation Fellows at a major investiture in Abuja, marking a significant step in the development of specialised competition and antitrust practice in Nigeria.
The ceremony, held at the Rockview Royale Hotel, Wuse II, Abuja, also witnessed the formal unveiling of the Antitrust and Trade Laws Practitioners Association (ATLAPA) and brought together Senior Advocates of Nigeria, academics, legislators, public officials, business leaders and other professionals with interests in competition, trade and economic regulation.
Addressing the pioneer Fellows, Chief Paul-Harris Ogbole, SAN, President of ICAP, challenged them to recognise that their induction imposed responsibilities extending far beyond the prestige of professional recognition.
Ogbole said the selection of the Foundation Fellows reflected their dedication to professional and public service, while urging them to commit their experience and expertise to building the Institute and advancing competition and antitrust practice in Nigeria.
The Fellows are entitled to use the professional designation F.ICAP.
For Ogbole, however, the significance of the title lies in what its holders contribute to the development of a new area of professional practice.
He said ICAP was established to create a structured professional platform for capacity building, training, certification, ethical standards, research and continuous professional development in competition law, antitrust regulation and related areas.
The Institute is expected to build specialist expertise, while ATLAPA will provide a platform for professional interaction, advocacy and engagement by practitioners, academics and other stakeholders.
Digital Markets, AfCFTA Raise Stakes for Nigerian Lawyers
The establishment of the two bodies comes at a time when competition law is assuming greater importance in Nigeria and across Africa.
Ogbole drew attention to rapidly expanding digital markets, cross-border transactions and the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area, arguing that Nigeria must develop professionals capable of dealing with increasingly complex competition and market-regulation issues.
He warned against dependence on foreign expertise for issues touching directly on Nigeria’s economic sovereignty, particularly as AfCFTA expands the commercial space in which Nigerian businesses operate and digital platforms exercise increasing influence over data, markets and consumers.
The emerging practice area has implications well beyond traditional courtroom litigation.
Competition lawyers and professionals may increasingly be required to advise on mergers and acquisitions, restrictive agreements, abuse of dominant market positions, cartels, consumer protection, digital platforms, trade arrangements, market-entry strategies and regulatory investigations.
Ogbole consequently stressed the importance of practitioners understanding and applying Nigeria’s Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018, particularly provisions dealing with agreements or arrangements capable of preventing, restricting or distorting competition.
He said the new Institute would work with government institutions, regulators, professional bodies and other stakeholders to strengthen professional capacity and increase awareness of competition and consumer-protection law.
Echono, Suswam, Fawehinmi, Hon, Others Inducted
Among prominent Nigerians inducted as pioneer Foundation Fellows were TETFund Executive Secretary, Architect Sonny Echono; former Benue State Governor, Senator Gabriel Suswam; Vice-Chancellor of Yakubu Gowon University, Professor Hakeem Babatunde Fawehinmi; Secretary to the Cross River State Government, Professor Anthony Owan Enoh; Professor Sebastine Hon, SAN; and Senator Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe.
Other Foundation Fellows include Chief Emeka Obegolu, SAN; Senator Dino Melaye; Dr. Agada Elachi, SAN; Mr. Johnny Agim, SAN; Chief R.O. Atabo, SAN; and Chief A.A. Malik, SAN, among other distinguished professionals.
Atabo, SAN, speaking following his induction, described the fellowship as both an honour and an additional responsibility, noting that effective competition regulation could help protect smaller businesses and create a commercial environment in which enterprises are able to compete fairly.
Professor Anthony Owan Enoh, who represented Cross River State Governor Senator Bassey Otu at the ceremony, was also inducted as a Foundation Fellow.
‘Nigeria Needs Competent Competition Professionals’
Chairman of the occasion, Alhaji Aminu Abdulkadir Mbamba, said the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act and the establishment of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission had given Nigeria an important statutory and institutional framework for competition regulation.
He, however, stressed that effective implementation would also depend on knowledgeable professionals capable of advising businesses, supporting regulators and helping government formulate effective competition policies.
Mbamba called for collaboration between government and ICAP, arguing that stronger competition could protect smaller businesses, discourage monopolistic practices, improve consumer choice and support innovation.
A paper was also presented at the ceremony on behalf of Professor Uche Uwaleke by Barrister Morris Ayam.
The presentation welcomed the establishment of ICAP and expressed the view that the Institute could contribute significantly to professionalising competition practice and strengthening Nigeria’s evolving antitrust framework.
The ceremony culminated in the presentation of certificates to the Foundation Fellows and the formal unveiling of ICAP and ATLAPA.
Beyond the investiture, however, the significance of the event lies in the creation of a specialised professional ecosystem around an area of law that is becoming increasingly central to business transactions, consumer welfare, digital markets and continental trade.
For Nigerian lawyers, economists, regulators, compliance professionals and corporate advisers, competition law is no longer a peripheral area of practice. The emergence of ICAP and ATLAPA signals an effort to build the domestic expertise, professional standards and institutional capacity required for the next phase of Nigeria’s market economy.
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