Nigeria To Host Global Conference On Rebuilding Trust Through Communication
At a time when anyone with a smartphone can shape public opinion, or distort it, communication leaders are turning to Abuja for a new global framework on how information should serve society.
Ahead of the World Public Relations Forum (WPRF) 2026, Chairman of its National Planning Committee, Dr Suleiman Haruna, and NIPR President, Dr Ike Neliaku, told diplomats in Abuja that the November gathering would bring communication professionals face-to-face with policymakers to develop an Abuja Declaration on Responsible Communication.
Neliaku said the forum would examine how communication can strengthen trust, peacebuilding, governance and development, while urging diplomatic missions to mobilise participation from their countries.
The Secretary General African Public Relations Association, Dr Omoniyi Ibietan, said Africa would also push for an African Declaration on the Professionalisation of Public Relations, with attention to self-regulation and media literacy in an era when virtually anyone can publish to a global audience.
Responding on behalf of the diplomatic Corps, the Ambassador of the Philippines to Nigeria, The Ambassador of Philippines, Ambassador Mersole Mellejor assured the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations and its partners of the Diplomatic Corps’ support towards making the November 2026 forum a success for Nigeria and the global public relations community.
The week-long forum will draw diplomats, policymakers, business leaders, academics, young people and communication professionals to Abuja, with President Bola Tinubu as Chief Host and the Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema as presidential keynote speaker.
