By: Fasilat Rauf
Kawthar Monisola Salaudeen, a final year law student of the university of Ibadan has won the 2021 Purvez Bilimoria Global Award for Legal Excellence. The award was initiated by Rohan Bilimoria and his brother Karan Bilimoria in honor of their late father. The winner of the award will receive a one-time cash grant of 5,000 Australian Dollars to assist with their tuition fees.
To announce the winner, Rohan Bilimoria took to his page on LinkedIn that they reviewed submissions from over 65 law students around the world. “We are honored to present the award and A$5000 grant to Kawthar Salaudeen, a 24-year-old law student from the University of Ibadan in Nigeria”
“Kawthar is a passionate human rights advocate with a huge heart and an impressive academic and extracurricular record. We are confident that she will make her family, university and country very proud, and her achievements will continue to inspire young lawyers across the African continent.” He posted on his LinkedIn page.
While speaking to Kawthar on how she felt upon receiving the award, she stated that words alone cannot capture the delight she felt. That the win felt surreal and it was a huge relief after a long time of hard work.
“When I applied, I didn’t worry so much about the application because I told my story perfectly and I believe that I am in the best position to tell my story. I was not sure I would win the contest until one of the organizers requested for my CV and details on how I will use the fund if I got it. That was 11 days after submission” She explained.
“In all, don’t self-reject, do it scared even if you feel lonely, just do it” She concluded.
Kawthar is the 2nd UI Law student to win the contest after Evaristus Okechukwu.
