Bobi Wine shunned as three Ugandans are nominated among most influential Young Africans

Kyadondo East Legislator Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu alias Bobi Wine has been dropped from the 100 most influential Young Africans in favor of fellow artiste, Edirisa Musuza alias Eddy Kenzo and two other Ugandans.

Bobi Wine made the list last year, which also featured Liverpool stars Mohammad Salah and Sadio Mane. However, while the other two have made this year’s list, the singer has not made the cut for the 2019 list of influential young Africans.

Instead, Ugandans; Eddy Kenzo, BBC journalist Nancy Kacungira as well as Sports pundit and journalist Usher Komugisha have salvaged positions for the pearl.

According to the organisers, Kenzo’s award was given based on his contribution to the African music industry following his release of his 2014 single, “Sitya Loss” and an accompanying viral video that featured the Triplets Ghetto Kids.

Nancy Kacungira is acknowledged as a multi-award-winning BBC journalist with more than 10 years of media experience in East Africa.

“As a speaker and moderator, Nancy has presented on some of the world’s biggest platforms including TedX, the World Economic Forum, and a Presidential Debate. She holds a Master’s degree in International Communications from the University of Leeds.”

“Also an entrepreneur, Nancy co-founded the Blu Flamingo digital agency, which now operates in four African countries. One of her biggest commitments is towards championing diversity, balance, and nuance in narratives about Africa.”

Usher Komugisha is one of the few female sports journalists paving the way for other young women in the industry and has been at the helm of Africa’s sports journalism, breaking down barriers in the male-dominated field of sports broadcasting.

“She is a writer for the International Basketball Federation and contributor on African football to SuperSport TV, BBC Africa Football and Guardian Sport.”

The awards are in their fourth year and they aim to throw a spotlight on the achievements, contributions, and efforts of young Africans who have toiled towards development and also to serve as motivation to several young people in Africa.

Sharing insights on the awards, Prince Akpah, founding president of Africa Youth Awards, mentioned that this year’s list features a record of 52 females and 48 males from 32 countries and is an attestation of the works put forth by young people who are passionate about changing the narrative of the African continent.

Also awarded are; Nigerian Artistes; David Adedeji Adeleke, who goes by his stage name Davido, Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu alias Burna Boy, Arsenal’s Gabonese striker Pierre Emerick Aubameyang as well as  Everton’s Nigerian winger Alex Iwobi.

Notable among the listed females, include Alaah Salah, a Sudanese student and anti-government protester. She gained attention from a picture of her taken by Lana Haroun that went viral in April 2019. The image of Salah has been dubbed as “Woman in White” or “Lady Liberty” of Sudan.