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A civic futurist, policy analyst, and social justice campaigner, Ebenezar Wikina, has been named winner of The Future Awards Africa Independent (TFAAi) Prize for Community Action.
This was announced at the awards ceremony held in Port Harcourt on Saturday.
The award recognises Wikina’s sustained work building citizen-led governance and civic engagement platforms across Nigeria, Africa, and Rivers State in particular.
He is the Founder of Policy Shapers and Convener of the Rivers 2050 Vision; a 25-year citizen-led development blueprint for Rivers State. The first of its kind in Nigeria’s history. The initiative has surveyed more than 4,000 residents across all 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers State, and is backed by a 150-person youth task force and a network of up to 90 experts.
Wikina currently serves as Senior Advisor at Nguvu Collective, where he has trained civic leaders and grassroots organisations from more than 40 countries. He is also a Thematic Lead at the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) and sits on the Advisory Board of Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF), AdvoKC Foundation, and the Fort Institute. He is a Skoll Fellow, a Mandela Washington Fellow, and a fellow of the Next Generation Foresight Practitioners (NGFP) programme run by the School of International Futures (SOIF) in London.
This marks Wikina’s third TFAA nomination in ten years. He was first nominated in 2016 in the New Media category for The Stroll, his interview series started with his Nokia phone featuring over 100 leaders and experts around the world, and again in 2018 in the Public Service category for guest-lecturing more than 600 students pro bono across two academic sessions at Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic.
Earlier in his career, Wikina led two flagship civic campaigns: #ReadNotRuns, a 2008 exam integrity campaign, and #ReformIELTS, which mobilised more than 80,000 petition signatures and influenced English language test policy changes at over 20 universities across three continents.
Speaking while accepting the award, Ebenezar Wikina reflected on Port Harcourt’s recently commemorated 113th Anniversary. He said, “Great historians and anthropologists have found that every 100 years a society reaches a threshold that requires new leadership. Rivers State needs new leadership… not just in politics but in every sector represented in this award tonight…”
He ended his speech by telling nominees and awardees at the event, “Your State needs you. Rivers State needs you…”
The Future Awards Africa Independent (TFAAi) is a state-level franchise and extension of The Future Awards Africa (TFAA), created to deepen impact beyond the national stage and celebrate changemakers across Nigeria. .
