A 16-year old Nigerian, Mr. Obase-wotta Kammonke, has been selected to serve as a Global Scholar at the 2015 Global Young Leaders Conference (GYLC).

In a letter conveying this honour signed by the Dean of Academic Affairs, Global Young Leaders Conference, Marguerite C. Regan, Obase-wotta’s invitation to represent Nigeria places him among a very select group of top students across the world based on their “demonstrated leadership potential”.

As a distinguished Global Scholar, Obase-wotta will have the option of participating in one of the three distinct programmes: the United States programme, to be held in Washington, DC and New York City; the China programme, which will be held in Beijing, Hangzhou and Shanghai; or the Europe programme, which will take place in Vienna, Prague and Berlin.

GYLC is a 10-day leadership journey that helps students adopt international leadership strategies, embrace diverse cultures and backgrounds and appreciate unique ways of thinking and seeing the world.

Attracting the most motivated students from across the United States and more than 155 countries, the programme prepares students to succeed in multicultural environments with confidence, independence and skill.

Obase-wotta attended the Surefoot International (SIS) School, Calabar and the Graceland Schools, Uyo.  He led SIS to a state-wide French Competition victory, he won the Association of International Schools (AISA) international art competition and was among the 12 artists chosen across Africa; his art work was used in the organisation’s calendar in 2012.

He is a model as well as a sports analyst in Cross River Broadcasting Corporation. He has been a Sports Editor for Politics Herald newspaper. He runs a blog where he shares lifestyle stories and analysis. He was a guest writer for an online UK sports magazine — The False Nine. He is also an award winning essayist.

He has consistently been an honours roll recipient in Surefoot International School, Calabar.

He envisions a world without wars, where young people will have an opportunity to express themselves with their God-given talents.

He hopes to contribute to Nigeria by introducing alternative vocations in the arts and entertainment and change the conventional mindset most people have about ‘the arts’ being an unserious field.