Nigerian priest elected first African president of SIGNIS, World Catholic Association for Communication

Nigerian priest and communications scholar Rev. Fr. Prof. Walter Chikwendu Ihejirika has been elected President of SIGNIS World, becoming the first African to lead the World Catholic Association for Communication since its establishment in 2001.

Fr. Ihejirika was elected during the SIGNIS World Congress taking place in Kigali, Rwanda, from August 3 to 8, 2026. He succeeds Helen Osman and will serve a four year term as president of the global association of Catholic media professionals.

Joining him on the new leadership team are Pamela Aleman of SIGNIS USA Canada and Magimai Pragasam of India, who were elected Vice Presidents, while Adriana Racasan of SIGNIS Europe was elected Treasurer.

The election marks a significant moment for Africa’s growing influence in Catholic communications, coming as the continent hosts the SIGNIS World Congress for the first time.

Fr Ihejirika brings to the global office nearly a decade of continental leadership, having just completed two terms as President of SIGNIS Africa. During his tenure, he led efforts to strengthen the organisation’s governance through the adoption of its constitution, organised continental congresses and workshops across Africa, and championed the formation of young Catholic communicators through the SIGNIS Africa Citizen Journalists of Hope initiative.

He also oversaw the registration of the SIGNIS Humanitarian Foundation in Nigeria, giving the continental body legal recognition and providing a platform for humanitarian and academic initiatives, including the publication of the Journal of Religious, Cultural and Humanitarian Studies.

A priest of the Catholic Diocese of Ahiara in Imo State, Nigeria, Fr Ihejirika is a Professor of Development Communication and Media Studies and the pioneer Dean of the Faculty of Communication and Media Studies at the University of Port Harcourt.

Ordained in 1994, he pursued advanced studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, earning master’s degrees in Missiology and Communication Studies before completing a doctorate in Communication Studies. He later obtained a master’s degree in the Pedagogy of Communication from the Pontifical Salesian University.

Beyond academia, Fr Ihejirika has served as a consultant on communication and media to several ecclesiastical and international organisations, including the Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria, the National Broadcasting Commission of Nigeria, the Communications Commission of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM), UNESCO initiatives, and other international bodies.

He founded SIGNIS Nigeria and served as its President before being elected Vice President of SIGNIS Africa in 2014. In 2017, he was elected President of SIGNIS Africa and was re elected in 2022, playing a leading role in expanding the association’s presence across the continent.

His international engagement also includes serving on SIGNIS juries at major film festivals such as Venice, FESPACO, Locarno and Zanzibar, while his academic work has produced more than 70 scholarly publications in communication and media studies.

Fr. Ihejirika’s election is seen as a recognition of Africa’s growing contribution to Catholic communications and media, as well as the continent’s increasing role in shaping the future of the universal Church.