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ICFJ, Wikimedia Honour Nigerian, African Journalists for Outstanding Reporting
International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), in partnership with the Wikimedia Foundation, has named three African journalists as recipients of the 2026 Open the Knowledge Journalism Awards, with two Nigerians emerging as first and second-place winners.
The awards recognise journalists whose well-researched reporting helps expand knowledge about Africa and serves as reliable source material for volunteer editors who develop content on Wikipedia.
Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia operated by the Wikimedia Foundation, relies on evidence-based reporting to improve and expand its content, making journalists key contributors to building a more comprehensive global knowledge base.
Earlier this year, African journalists living on the continent were invited to nominate articles they had written that contribute to expanding knowledge about Africa, particularly in the areas of women and youth, as well as arts, culture, heritage and sports.
The organisers said a total of 320 entries were received from journalists across 40 African countries.
The first prize was awarded to Nigerian freelance journalist, Rakiya Muhammad, for her article, West Africa’s Borderless Women: Inside the Yoruba Sisterhood Linking Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire, published in RM Times.
The story documents the decades-long migration of women from Ejigbo in Osun State to Côte d’Ivoire in search of economic opportunities.
According to the report, the women have become a dominant force in markets in Abidjan while strengthening cultural and economic ties between Nigeria and Côte d’Ivoire.
The article also revealed that as much as 80 per cent of Ejigbo’s economy is supported by remittances and investments from its people living in Côte d’Ivoire.
Reacting to the recognition, Muhammad said the award had renewed her commitment to telling authentic stories that place African women at the centre of development, leadership and social change.
“Receiving this honour renews my passion for telling stories that place African women at the heart of the narrative as active agents of development, leadership and social change.
“The recognition rekindles my commitment to documenting positive stories about Africa with authenticity and depth, while shedding light on the gendered dimensions often overlooked in broader discussions,” she said.
Second place went to another Nigerian journalist, Abiodun Adewale of The Punch, for his story, Breaking Boundaries: How Nigeria’s U-19 Women Are Rewriting Cricket History.
The article chronicles the preparation and performance of Nigeria’s Junior Female Yellow Greens at the 2025 International Youth Cricket World Cup.
The organisers noted that the story highlighted the growing popularity of cricket in Nigeria, a sport that receives relatively limited media attention compared to other sporting disciplines.
A special recognition award was presented to Kenyan journalist Angeline Ochieng of Nation Media Group for her article, The Converts: How Reformed Midwives Are Ending Maternal Deaths, published in the Daily Nation.
The story focuses on former traditional birth attendants in rural Kenya who abandoned the practice to advocate hospital deliveries, contributing to a reduction in maternal deaths and childbirth complications.
President of ICFJ, Sharon Moshavi, said journalism and Wikipedia have a mutually beneficial relationship.
According to her, Wikipedia’s volunteer editors rely on independent journalism to build a more complete knowledge resource, while journalists benefit from the encyclopedia’s global and multilingual reach.
“These awards recognise that relationship and the African journalists who are making our digital information ecosystems stronger,” she said.
Chief Communications Officer of the Wikimedia Foundation, Anusha Alikhan, said although Wikipedia is the largest encyclopedia ever created, it remains incomplete.
She said stories written by Africans about issues affecting the continent were essential to ensuring that the encyclopedia reflected diverse experiences and perspectives.
“We celebrate the three journalists who have received the Open the Knowledge Journalism Awards and thank them for making this kind of reporting possible,” she said.
President of Wikimedia Nigeria and member of this year’s awards selection committee, Olaniyan Ishola Oulushola, commended the quality of the winning entries.
He said each of the selected articles presented opportunities to improve information about Africa on Wikipedia.
“From documenting the history of women cross-border traders in West Africa to the achievements of female cricketers, each of these articles brings us a step closer to closing the knowledge gaps we are working on every day,” he said.
The organisers noted that Wikipedia marked its 25th anniversary in January 2026.
They said the platform is currently among the world’s 10 most-visited websites and remains the only one in that category operated by a non-profit organisation.
According to them, Wikipedia currently hosts more than 65 million articles in over 300 languages, created by nearly 250,000 volunteer editors worldwide, attracting close to 15 billion page views every month.
However, they observed that many topics relating to Africa remain underrepresented, with only about 3.7 per cent of articles on the English version of Wikipedia focusing on the continent.
They explained that the knowledge gap reflects broader shortcomings in global media coverage, noting that new information can only be added to Wikipedia when supported by citations from published and reliable sources.
The 2026 award recipients were selected by a committee comprising African civil society leaders, academics, representatives of ICFJ and the Wikimedia Foundation, as well as members of the Wikipedia volunteer community.
Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has disclosed that the commission recovered more than N7.2 million stolen from the bank account of a serving judge by suspected internet fraudsters in a midnight cyberattack.
Ola Olukoyede, Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Olukoyede made the disclosure at the public presentation of two books authored by retired High Court judge, Justice Alaba Omolaye-Ajileye.
He said the serving judge, who is from a South-South state, contacted him around 1:00 a.m. after receiving multiple debit alerts indicating that funds had been withdrawn from her account.
According to him, the stolen money represented savings the judge had accumulated over six years to finance her child’s education.
Olukoyede said the EFCC immediately swung into action and successfully recovered the entire sum before 6:00 p.m. on the same day.
He said the incident underscored the increasing sophistication of cybercriminals and the urgent need for stronger collaboration among law enforcement agencies, the judiciary and members of the public in tackling financial crimes.
The EFCC chairman also called for amendments to Nigeria’s legal framework to accommodate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in criminal investigations and prosecutions.
According to him, existing evidence laws should be reviewed to recognise AI-generated evidence as technology continues to reshape crime detection and investigation.
Also speaking at the event, former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Chief Kanu Agabi (SAN), urged anti-corruption agencies to intensify efforts to trace and recover public funds allegedly stolen and stashed in foreign countries.
Agabi stressed the need for sustained collaboration among relevant institutions to strengthen Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts and improve accountability in public service.
In his remarks, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Chief Wole Olanipekun (SAN), called for stricter enforcement of the country’s cybercrime laws to curb the growing menace of internet fraud.
Olanipekun said effective implementation of existing laws, alongside stronger institutional cooperation, would help address the increasing threat posed by cybercriminals to individuals and the nation’s financial system.
Federal Government has cleared nearly N39 billion in outstanding pension liabilities owed to retirees under the Defined Benefit Scheme (DBS), including former employees of the defunct Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL), Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTEL), the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and other federal government agencies.
The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) disclosed this in a statement, saying the payments were in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which prioritises the settlement of inherited pension liabilities and improved welfare for retired public servants.
According to the directorate, the largest component of the payment, amounting to N25 billion, covered about 35 months of outstanding pension arrears owed to nearly 10,000 eligible retirees of the defunct NITEL and MTEL.
PTAD also said it disbursed about N9.5 billion as the first tranche of Back End Computation (BEC) arrears to eligible pensioners of the defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria.
The Executive Secretary of PTAD, Mrs Tolulope Odunaiya, described the payments as a significant milestone in the Federal Government’s efforts to clear inherited pension obligations and strengthen confidence in the Defined Benefit Scheme.
Odunaiya said the settlement was made possible following presidential approval granted in 2025 and funding provided under the 2026 Appropriation Act.
She noted that the intervention had enabled the directorate to resolve long-standing pension liabilities affecting thousands of retirees.
“The successful settlement reflects the Federal Government’s commitment to sustaining pension reforms and ensuring that retirees receive their entitlements promptly in line with the objectives of the Renewed Hope Agenda,” she said.
Odunaiya thanked the affected pensioners for their patience while the liabilities remained outstanding and reaffirmed PTAD’s commitment to transparent, efficient and pensioner-focused service delivery.
She added that the directorate would continue to work towards improving pension administration and ensuring timely payment of retirees’ benefits.
A Federal High Court, Lagos has declared Mrs. Ebele Okpala, a female banker with Keystone Bank, wanted over alleged N35 million fraud.
Apart from declaring the banker who is said to be outside the country wanted, Justice deinde Dipeolu, trial judge in the matter, also directed the Department of State Security (DSS), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), and Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), to arrest her upon arriving the country.
Justice Dipeolu made the above order while granting a motion ex-parte marked FHC/L/530C/2024, filed and moved by M. Bello, on behalf of the Nigeria Police.
In the motion, Ebele Okpala and one Perpetual Onyeto, also a banker were listed as first and second defendants/respondents in the suit, while DSS, NIS and NCS were listed as cited parties/respondents.
In urging the court to make the above orders, Bello, informed the court that the application was pursuant to several sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, and under the court’s inherent jurisdiction. Adding that the application was supported by an affidavit deposed to by Inspector Tope Akerele of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID), Special Fraud Unit (SFU), Ikoyi, Lagos.
In granting the application, Justice Dipeolu held, “After considering the application and the supporting affidavit, the request had merit and granted all the reliefs sought by the prosecution.
“That an order is hereby made that the 1st defendant/despondent be declared wanted and placed on the wanted list of the Nigeria Police Special Fraud Unit, 13, Milverton Road, Ikoyi, Lagos until she is arrested.
“That an order is hereby made compelling cited parties/respondents to assist in apprehending 1st defendant/Respondent once he enters into the country.
“That an order is hereby made permitting the Publication of the name of the 1st defendant/despondent in the National Daily Newspapers and Social Media handles by the Nigeria Police Special Fraud Unity Ikoyi, Lagos for the purpose of fulfilling the requirement of the Order 1 above.”
Recall that both the wanted banker and the second defendant/respondent were previously arraigned before the court by the operatives of the police Special Fraud Unit, PSFU.
Specifically, the two bankers were arraigned before the court sometimes in September 2024, on alleged conspiracy, theft, money laundering, fraudulent lift of lien placed on bank’s customer’s account and obtaining the sum of N35 million by false presence.
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