The 22nd Young International Freight Forwarder of the Year (YIFFY) Award – supported by the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) and TT Club – has been announced.
This year’s winner is Umair Aamir Sheikh, representing the Pakistan International Freight Forwarders Association.
YIFFY candidates must submit a 6,000-word dissertation outlining the pertinent details of an import and export shipment from their native country. The YIFFYA selects four regional winners who are invited to attend the annual FIATA World Congress where they present their dissertations to a panel of judges.
Sheikh beat off stiff competition from Femke Marie Fürst, representing the German Freight Forwarding and Logistics Association (DSLV); Vimbai Loreen Manyumbu, representing the Shipping and Forwarding Agents’ Association of Zimbabwe (SFAAZ); and Anastasia Gureeva, representing the Canadian International Freight Forwarders Association (CIFFA).
“In the face of such a difficult year due to the pandemic, we are heartened to receive very high-quality dissertations from all four FIATA regions,” said Thomas Sim, FIATA senior vice president. “Candidates have demonstrated tenacity, versatility and high standards of research and applications in their various domains and areas of operations. FIATA’s continuous efforts towards nurturing and motivating the youth in logistics and freight forwarding will persist in the face of our industry’s disruption and digital transformation.”
Sheikh joined the freight forwarding industry four years ago. His dissertation took into account the effects of digitalisation on freight forwarding activities and concluded that, despite the technology currently available, the role of the freight forwarder remains essential.
