MAF Convention 2026: Akueme, Uche Ugwu, Festus Uzor, Dignitaries Champion Strategic Leadership as Service to Shape Communities
MAF Convention 2026: Akueme, Uche Ugwu, Festus Uzor, Dignitaries Champion Strategic Leadership as Service to Shape Communities
~ Foundation rewards academic excellence, leadership and resilience, awards bursaries as dignitaries urge strategic investment in education and human capital
The Maurice Akueme Foundation (MAF) on Saturday, August 8, 2026, held its Annual Convention and Bursary Awards Ceremony at the CWO Hall, St. Joseph Catholic Church, Ukana, Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State, with political leaders, traditional rulers, academics, community leaders, students, parents, beneficiaries and other stakeholders in attendance.
Held under the theme, “Shaping Communities: The Power of Strategic Leadership,” the convention featured the presentation of bursaries and scholarships to deserving students, recognition of academic excellence, outstanding leadership and resilience, as speakers and dignitaries challenged individuals to embrace leadership as a tool for service, community development and sustainable investment in human capital.
Among those recognised at the ceremony were Ubenyi Onyinyechi, who received the Academic Excellence Award; Okworka Olisaeloka, who received the Outstanding Leadership Award; and Onyemaechi Eze, recipient of the MAF Resilience Award, alongside other deserving members of the society.
Setting the tone for the event in his opening remarks, the Chief Coordinator of the Foundation, Ike Enemoh, described the convention as a celebration of hope, possibility and purposeful leadership. He said communities do not transform by accident and that meaningful development requires vision, sacrifice, strategy and leaders who are willing to act.
According to him, the Maurice Akueme Foundation was established on the conviction that the circumstances into which a person is born should not determine the height to which that person can rise.
Enemoh said the Foundation’s bursary and scholarship programmes were therefore not merely about providing financial assistance but about investing in human potential, stressing that educating one person could ultimately transform an entire family and community.
He also drew attention to the commitment of the Foundation’s President and Founder, Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme, particularly his continued return from the United Kingdom to participate personally in humanitarian programmes in Nigeria.
Enemoh said such sacrifice demonstrated the essence of strategic leadership, which, according to him, should focus less on what an individual gains and more on the difference that person can make in the lives of others.
Addressing the beneficiaries, he urged them to regard their bursaries and scholarships as opportunities and responsibilities, encouraging them to study hard, develop their skills, build character and, when they eventually acquire the capacity, create opportunities for others.
In his welcome address and Founder’s Speech, Chief Maurice Emeka Akueme appreciated political office holders, traditional rulers, community leaders, stakeholders, students, parents and beneficiaries for identifying with the Foundation.
Akueme reflected on the growth of MAF and highlighted some of its interventions in education, healthcare and youth empowerment. Among the programmes he mentioned was the MAF Pocket Doctor health scheme, which focuses principally on supporting people suffering from ailments such as malaria and typhoid. He disclosed that he invested N6 million in the initiative last year and had committed over N10 million in 2026.
He also highlighted the Foundation’s annual student empowerment programme through bursaries and scholarships, youth empowerment initiatives and the N100,000 MAF award for first-year graduates from Ukana, designed to encourage academic achievement.
The Founder presented the various interventions as part of a broader commitment to ensuring that philanthropy goes beyond temporary relief to create opportunities that enable people to build sustainable futures.
The Speaker of the Enugu State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Uche Callistus Ugwu, commended Akueme for establishing and sustaining the Foundation, describing his approach to education and the wellbeing of the people as consistent with the development initiatives of the administration of Governor Peter Mbah.
Ugwu described Akueme as an asset to Enugu State and encouraged him to continue with his humanitarian activities, noting that individuals and organisations also have an important role to play alongside government in improving the lives of citizens.
The Maurice Akueme Foundation Releases List of 2026 Bursary Award Beneficiaries
Also speaking, Dr. Festus Uzor, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Dr. Uzor Cares Foundation and former Chief of Staff to the Enugu State Government, described education as one of the greatest instruments of human-capacity development.
Uzor praised Akueme for supporting education and said anyone investing in education was effectively building society.
He noted that philanthropy was not necessarily about giving from excessive wealth, but about compassion and the willingness to share one’s opportunities with others.
“I’m not sure he is the richest man in Ukana and I’m not sure he has solved all his problems… but he is giving not out of too much wealth but out of concern, out of compassion,” Uzor said.
He urged beneficiaries to repay the goodwill they had received by extending similar assistance to others when they eventually became capable of doing so.
Uzor also spoke about the activities of his own Dr. Uzor Cares Foundation, which he said had provided bursaries and scholarships, food and cash support, hospital assistance and SME grants. He described the activities of both foundations as positively aligned and encouraged greater collaboration among individuals committed to community development.
The keynote speaker, Professor Chinedu Aguba, FNAEAP, MAE, Ph.D., Director of the Institute of Education, Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT), dissected the theme, “Shaping Communities: The Power of Strategic Leadership.”
Aguba described leadership as central to the growth of every human organisation and community, defining strategic leadership as the ability to make deliberate decisions today that determine the quality of life, opportunities and unity of communities tomorrow.
He identified clear vision, partnership and the creation of sustainable systems as key characteristics of strategic leadership, stressing that effective leaders should build structures capable of outliving individual leaders and projects.
The professor placed particular emphasis on education, describing it as a critical instrument for national development and commending MAF for making education a major component of its interventions.
Addressing the bursary beneficiaries, he urged them to make maximum use of the opportunity before them.
“Go and conquer the world!” he told the students, describing education as an equaliser capable of giving children from less privileged backgrounds the opportunity to compete with those from privileged homes.
The traditional institution was represented by HRH Igwe Tagbo Ubaka Oduoha II of Ukana, who prayed for the Foundation and encouraged Akueme and his team not to relent in their humanitarian work. He also urged beneficiaries and members of the community to support the Foundation through prayers and by reciprocating its goodwill.
Senator Osita Ngwu, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Air Force, was represented by Hon. Chris Mmah. The Senator commended MAF for its interventions and said communities would become better if more individuals with the capacity to give followed Akueme’s example of supporting people in need.
Also speaking, Amb. Prof. Cajethan Chineke highlighted Akueme’s antecedents in supporting Nigerian students, noting that his interventions had helped people access scholarships, employment and other opportunities.
Another significant feature of the programme was the payment of school fees for selected primary school pupils. The intervention was, however, not a Maurice Akueme Foundation programme. It was part of the J. U. Akueme Memorial Project, established by the family of the late John Udenna Akueme in his memory. The initiative was incorporated into the MAF Annual Convention, allowing the beneficiaries to receive the educational support as part of the wider community-centred activities surrounding the event.
The convention also featured music performances, drama, dancing, interviews, a question-and-answer session, awards presentation and cake cutting, adding a celebratory dimension to the day’s activities.
At the heart of the gathering was a shared message that communities are shaped by deliberate decisions and acts of service. From bursaries and scholarships to healthcare interventions, youth empowerment and recognition of excellence, the activities highlighted the importance of investing in people and creating opportunities for the next generation.
As Enemoh noted in his opening remarks, the ultimate measure of the Foundation’s success will not only be the number of beneficiaries it supports, but how many of those beneficiaries eventually become people who create opportunities for others.
The 2026 MAF Annual Convention therefore ended with a clear challenge to individuals, institutions and community leaders: leadership becomes most powerful when it is translated into service, while philanthropy becomes most meaningful when it creates a lasting legacy of empowerment.
MAF Convention 2026: Akueme, Uche Ugwu, Festus Uzor, Dignitaries Champion Strategic Leadership as Service to Shape Communities
5 thoughts on “MAF Convention 2026: Akueme, Uche Ugwu, Festus Uzor, Dignitaries Champion Strategic Leadership as Service to Shape Communities”