Across Africa, ideas are shaping the future — from tech solutions built in code to stories told through verse and film. For innovators and creatives ready to be seen, the 2026 Nigeria Prizes cycle is officially open.
The Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) company has announced a fresh call for entries, spotlighting Artificial Intelligence and ICT, poetry, and documentary filmmaking — fields where African voices are increasingly influencing global conversations.
For the Nigeria Prize for Science and Innovation, the focus remains on Information and Communication Technology, Artificial Intelligence, and Digital Technologies for Development. The theme returns after no winner emerged in the 2025 cycle, signalling NLNG’s push for solutions that go beyond theory.
Speaking on the new cycle, NLNG’s General Manager for External Relations and Sustainable Development, Sophia Horsfall, said the selected themes reflect a world being reshaped by digital intelligence and creative expression.
“The themes for the 2026 cycle reflect the realities of a world being reshaped by digital intelligence and creative expression,” she said, noting that innovation and creativity remain central to long-term national and continental development.
The Science and Innovation Prize, valued at $100,000, is open to scientists and innovators worldwide — including Africans working both at home and in the diaspora.
Entries are expected to demonstrate deployable, scalable solutions capable of addressing real challenges within Nigeria and similar African contexts.
Chairman of the Advisory Board, Prof. Barth Nnaji, urged innovators to submit work grounded in practical impact.
“We are looking for works that are inventive, credible, scalable, and capable of delivering measurable outcomes,” he said, stressing that science must translate into solutions people can use
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For writers, poetry takes centre stage in the 2026 Nigeria Prize for Literature. Nigerian poets, both resident in the country and abroad, are invited to submit collections published from 2023 onwards.
The prize is also valued at $100,000.
NLNG described poetry as a form that preserves memory, interrogates society, and captures both personal and collective African experiences — especially in times of change.
In a major shift, NLNG has also introduced The Nigeria Prize for Creative Arts, debuting with Documentary Film under the theme “Identity.”
Targeted at emerging Nigerian filmmakers aged 18 to 35, the prize — worth $20,000 — challenges young creatives to explore individual, communal, and cultural identities, and to reshape global perceptions of Nigeria and Africa through storytelling and visual excellence.
Chairman of the Advisory Board for Literature and Creative Arts, Prof. Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, described the new prize as a significant expansion of NLNG’s legacy.
“It reaffirms our belief that excellence transcends form — whether written, spoken, or filmed,” she said, adding that poetry and documentary film remain powerful tools for reflection, resistance, and social inquiry.
From tech labs to notebooks and camera lenses, the 2026 Nigeria Prizes underline a growing truth across Africa: innovation and creativity are not side conversations — they are central to how the continent defines its future.
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