The acting Director of Corporate Communications at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Hakama Sidi-Ali, has been named the 2026 National Spokesperson of the Year, completing a historic hat-trick at the National Spokespersons Awards.
Sidi-Ali received the honour at the 6th National Spokespersons Awards and the 4th Economic Confidential Annual Lecture organised by Image Merchants Promotion Limited (IMPR), publishers of PRNigeria, Economic Confidential and Spokespersons Digest, in Abuja.
The award makes her the first communications professional to move from winning a sector-specific category twice consecutively to clinching the overall National Spokesperson of the Year title.
Sidi-Ali first won the Outstanding Spokesperson – Banking Sector award in 2024, becoming the first female banking communicator to receive the honour. She retained the award in 2025 before emerging as the overall winner in 2026.
Her latest recognition also adds to her record at the CBN. Appointed in 2023 by CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, she became the first female spokesperson in the apex bank’s 66-year history.
According to the organisers, the 2026 award followed an evaluation of 171 nominations, with entries assessed on impact, innovation and originality, campaign reach and quality of evidence.
The jury commended Sidi-Ali for strengthening the CBN’s communication strategy through regular Monetary Policy Committee briefings, stakeholder engagements, investor relations, media management and international advocacy.
The organisers also noted that the CBN’s communication campaign was selected as a finalist at the 2026 International Public Relations Association Golden World Awards.
Earlier in 2026, Sidi-Ali was also recognised as the African Iconic Female Spokesperson of the Year at the African International Women Recognition Awards.
The National Spokespersons Award therefore adds another major recognition to her growing record in strategic communication and public engagement at Nigeria’s apex bank.
