Natasha Announces N1 Million Monthly Writing Competition, "Our Stories Matter"
- Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan has emphasised the importance of documenting women's achievements for future leadership
- Natasha pledged N1 million monthly for a writing competition to preserve stories of remarkable women
- WikiGap initiative aims to address gender disparities in digital knowledge and empower women's voices
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering politics, elections, public affairs and governance in Nigeria and Africa.
FCT, Abuja - Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, senator representing Kogi Central, has said the future of women’s leadership in Nigeria hinges on how intentionally their stories are documented today.
In a statement issued on Thursday, April 9, by her media aide, Michael Idoko, the senator, while speaking at the just-concluded WikiGap Nigeria Symposium 2026 in Abuja, called for stronger efforts to document women’s achievements. She also pledged a monthly donation of N1 million to support a writing competition dedicated to digitally preserving the stories of notable women, both past and present.
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Natasha backs women’s story preservation
Delivering an intervention at the symposium, Senator Natasha emphasised that the purported marginalisation of women in knowledge systems is a direct pathway to their exclusion from power structures.
The Cable quoted Natasha as saying:
“When women are invisible in knowledge, they are excluded from power. That is why WikiGap is not just a project… it is a movement to correct historical silence.”
The senator painted a vivid picture of the paradox facing Nigerian women leaders, innovators, and change makers whose impacts remain largely undocumented.
She said:
“Across Nigeria, women are leading, innovating, and transforming communities. Yet too many of their stories remain undocumented, their contributions unrecognised, and their impact undervalued.
“What is not recorded is often forgotten… and what is forgotten is rarely rewarded.”
Furthermore, Natasha stressed that initiatives like WikiGap go beyond merely filling informational voids.
The prominent National Assembly member noted:
“By creating and improving articles about notable Nigerian women, WikiGap is doing more than filling gaps in content. It is advancing rights, strengthening justice, and expanding opportunity. Because visibility is power. When women are seen, they are heard. When they are heard, they are supported. And when they are supported, they succeed.”
Drawing from her personal journey within Nigeria’s political terrain, she spoke about the structural and cultural barriers women continue to face, underscoring the resilience required to navigate such challenges.
She asserted:
“Our stories matter, our struggles matter, and our victories must not go undocumented. The future of women in leadership depends on how well we preserve and amplify these narratives today.”
In a notable appeal to content creators and media professionals, the senator charged journalists, writers, and digital contributors to take responsibility for reshaping narratives around women.
Senator Natasha said:
"I encourage journalists and authors to keep writing about women, write our journeys, our achievements, and even our challenges because that is how we inspire generations yet unborn."
She also highlighted the need for women to move beyond being subjects of documentation to becoming active creators of knowledge.
Natasha added:
“Women must not only be the subjects of knowledge… they must be its creators. We must encourage more Nigerian women to write, to edit, and to own their narratives in the digital space."
Natasha to fund women’s stories initiative
Perhaps the most defining moment of her address came with a financial commitment.
Announcing her support for the WikiGap initiative, the Kogi lawmaker pledged a monthly sum of N1 million to sponsor a writing competition focused on documenting authentic stories of remarkable women.
Source: Twitter
She said:
“Let us be intentional. Let us document boldly. Because every story we preserve is a step toward equality. When we write women into history, we write them into the future.”
A Facebook post by the senator is available below:
Legit.ng reports that the symposium, organised by Wikimedia User Group Nigeria, served as a platform to address gender disparities in digital knowledge systems. It featured panel discussions, workshops, and collaborative sessions to increase women’s representation in online knowledge repositories.
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Natasha asks FG to step up anti-smuggling interventions
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Senate called on the federal government to initiate immediate diplomatic and humanitarian measures to repatriate hundreds of Nigerian women and children currently held in Libyan prisons.
The resolution followed a motion by Senator Aniekan Bassey of Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District on the urgent need to safeguard Nigerians from smuggling, slavery, and human rights abuses in Libya.
Senator Natasha proposed an additional motion directing the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) and the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCS) to collaborate with Libyan authorities to fast-track the release and repatriation of Nigerian female inmates and their children born in detention.
Source: Legit.ng
