After Governor Uba Sani approved the bid put forth by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR), Kaduna State was officially announced as the host of the 2026 Nigeria Public Relations Week.
The Governor promised that the Kaduna edition would be among the most impressive in the event’s history when he welcomed Dr. Ike Neliaku, President of the NIPR, and his delegation to Sir Kashim Ibrahim House. He disclosed that the state government would nominate two officials to serve on the national planning committee and three others on the local organising committee to ensure a seamless experience.
“Food Security: From Policy Paper to Public Plates – The Public Relations Imperatives” is the theme for the 2026 edition, and Governor Sani said it is relevant and consistent with the Kaduna Peace Model, which emphasises non-kinetic approaches to peacebuilding.
According to him, his administration has made agricultural development a priority as a means of achieving long-term peace and economic stability, increasing the sector’s budgetary allocation from less than 1% to 12% above the Malabo Declaration benchmark of 10%. He went on to say that there’s security, farmers are returning to their lands, as over 500,000 hectares of land have been hijacked from bandits.
He revealed: “Agriculture now contributes 43 per cent to Kaduna State’s GDP and employs about 60 per cent of our population.”
Continuing, he highlighted ongoing projects to improve post-harvest procedures and market access, such as the creation of a Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zone and a collaboration with Afreximbank to establish an Agricultural Quality Assurance Center. Along with highlighting the reopening of all previously closed schools and 192 primary healthcare facilities, Governor Sani also reported that peace had returned to areas like Birnin Gwari and Giwa.
He also mentioned that Kaduna’s security status was recently raised from “red” to “amber” by the UK government, indicating a renewed sense of confidence in the state’s safety.
In his remarks, Dr. Neliaku stated that Kano served as the alternate host and that Kaduna was selected following a thorough evaluation process. The 2026 edition will be crucial because it comes before Nigeria hosts the World Public Relations Forum later that year, which will be the second time the global event is held in Africa and the first in Nigeria, he said.
He also disclosed that the first University of Public Relations and Leadership in the world was being developed by NIPR in collaboration with the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, BrandSpur Nigeria news reports.
