Collins Nweke to Deliver Keynote Address at the 2026 Ikenga Day

“History does not only ask us to remember. History asks us what we will do with memory.” 

When I reflect on our journey, I see a quiet but discernible yearning across our communities; a desire to restore the fraternal bonds that once carried us through our darkest hours.

But what if our greatest challenge today isn’t to recreate the #Njikota that enabled separation, but to summon a new Njikota capable of transforming the Nigerian federation? 

I am deeply honoured to deliver the #KeynoteAddress for Ikenga Day 2026, hosted by The AfrikaFora under the title👉🏽 Njikota: From The Memory of Separation to The Courage of Nation-Building.

In this address, I unpack several crucial ideas:

👉🏽Redefining Our Agency: Moving from solidarity born out of separation to solidarity driven by national transformation. 
👉🏽Turning Memory into Strategy: Moving past the politics of grievance to build real structural reform. 
👉🏽Enlarging the Circle: Reconnecting Ndigbo across artificial state lines and restoring historical bridges with our neighbours. 
👉🏽Choosing Connection over Isolation: Deploying our finest values to remake Nigeria into a place where no one ever feels the need to leave. 

Our ancestors taught us Igwebuike: there is strength in numbers. It is time for our generation to show the courage to build bridges across old trenches. 

I hope you will join me, our visionary Founder & CEO Madam Winnifred Uloaku Gaillard, and our Chairman of the Day & Grand Patron, Prof. (Chief) Ben Etiaba for this essential conversation. 

Let us redefine Njikota for our time.

See you on Friday 21 August, 4 – 6 pm (CET) at Ikenga Day 2026! 

Participation is free but registration is highly recommended for organisational reasons. Register here👉🏾 https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ikenga-day-2026-tickets-1998072220799?aff=oddtdtcreator