…As ‘African Institute of Public Speaking and Communication Excellence’ unveiled in PH
Most scholars think Africa is being presented to the world by outsiders who apply the wrong brush. From History books to Literature, movies, and diplomatic castings, Africa is said to be seen in the eyes of outsiders with a language of their choice.
They believe that over the centuries, Africa’s narrative and reality have been shaped by others through whose lenses the rest of the world encounter, feel, or perceive the African continent.
The African experience as constructed by non-Africans through literature and communication is seen to have continued to shape the continent’s reality. This perception of Africa influences global interactions, trade and other opportunities.
These realities that characterised the African experience highlight the role of effective communication narrative and its impacts on a people.
Experts who gathered in Port Harcourt Thursday, April 30, 2026, observed that the harm was not only in corruption of most African names and towns but in phrases that African use and the communications processes that define the continent.
For this reason, Communication has been pinpointed as the vehicle that would drive the shift to a new learning so Africa could be presented in its true colours through what experts called ‘Language Excellence.’
Africa’s business leaders and experts thus called on governments to treat communication as infrastructure and technology as a key to change the African narrative.
As parts of efforts to reshape the African narrative leaders on the continent are rethinking and taking practical steps to reclaim Africa and its lost glory through effective public speaking and communication.
This need for Africa to reshape her destiny through effective and strategic communication was emphasized by Warmate Idikio, founder, the AfCFTA Roundtable who is also the Director-General of the Yenagoa Chamber of Commerce Industry Trade Mines and Agriculture (YECHIMA).
In his Keynote address with the theme: ‘Speak Influence, Lead; Investing in Africa’s Future’ at the investiture ceremony and institute launch of ‘African Institute of Public Speaking and Communication Excellence’ in Port Harcourt,
Warmate Idikio emphasized the power of narrative, and the impacts of perception on the development of the African region.
He said: “Let us see cultural communication as power not accident, as a tool to reshape perception about Africa, as transformation is strategically communicated.”
Idikio charged African leaders on clear and effective communication and also to identify who is shaping the language as it is a powerful tool in destiny of Africa in the next 20 years.
Idikio said that for Africa to harness it’s full potential, the vision and communication must be so clear that people must believe it.
Idikio identified Africa and Nigeria’s greatest challenge as a lack of coherent and compelling communication rather than a lack of idea.
The keynote speaker explained that from colonial literature to modern media cycle, the continent of Africa has often been framed through a narrow and repetitive lens that magnifies crises and minimises creativity, reports conflict and minimises innovation.
He talked about a narrative that often depicts Africa as the poorest of the poor but that such narrative is no longer sustainable as Africa is changing for the better as it is evident in the many giant strides recorded by young Africans in the tech space, Afrobeat, and fintechs that now command more subscribers than the mainstream commercial banks. According to Idikio, Africa is now beginning to speak for itself.
Africa must move from a subject of global conversation to shaper of global discourse and the continent of Africa must be the one generating the information that is in circulation.
To create the desired impact, government in Africa must learn to communicate clearly not just to themselves but to the youth who are trailblazers in this age where social media explosion is setting the trend. Idikio further emphasized that leaders who fail to adapt risk irrelevance.
He charged African leaders to treat communication as infrastructure and that technology is key if Africa must own its narrative.
Africa must train its leaders to communicate vision effectively as the future of the continent will be built by persuasion and clarity of communication, he added.
He further charged all on the continent to take advantage of the depth and diversity of African stories to influence the world with purpose, that of changing the negative narrative that limits the development of the continent.
In his address of welcome, Emmanuel Dorgbaa, founder and Executive Director African Institute of Public Speaking And Communication Excellence, said that in an era where leadership is loud but communication is hollow, the Institute is raising a standard. He said Africa’s greatest untapped resource is not oil, not minerals, but the power of its voices.
Dorgbaa said that the African Institute of Public Speaking and Communication Excellence was born from convenience. “It was born from a conviction that Africa deserves an institution solely dedicated to developing leaders who do not just speak but move systems, shift narratives, and shape the future.”
He explained that the launch of an endowment fund is a declaration that the institution is not for today’s applause but for the next generation’s access, and that no deserving voice will be silenced by circumstance and that excellence would be funded, sustained, and multiplied.
He said the institute is up to address the pressing need for effective communication which, according to him, is the backbone of effective leadership and business success as well as the development of Africa.
On his part, George Okoroma, who is the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Institute, in his opening remark at the event, said that the institute is as a result of vision, courage, and the desire to bring an idea to life.
Okoroma stressed the need for leaders who can communicate with clarity, conviction and credibility, one who stands at the intersection of leadership and influence.
The engineer stated that the Institute is just an organisation but a commitment to standard, to structure, sustainability, and to ensure that what is being built stands the test of time.
On the role of the BoT, Okoroma said that the board exists to provide stability, safeguard the vision, and to ensure that excellence is not just declared but consistently delivered.
During the event, a total of 23 notable individuals who have distinguished themselves in their different endeavours received Investiture as fellows of the institute among whom were Prince Chinedu Mmon (a professor and former commissioner of education in Rivers State); Lanre Oluseye (a business leader, pastor, and Convener of Convergence conference series; KO Baba Journsen (a comedian and entrepreneur); Uche Onochie (startup south founder; Joyce Kaprika, Helpmeet Ene Secondus.
Responding to the Investiture, Kaprika said it is a call to do more in the service of humanity and repositioning the African continent for greater opportunities through effective communication.
She called on youths of Africa to take advantage of the training provided at the African Institute of Public Speaking and Communication Excellence to develop themselves for leadership roles and economic development.
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