Ned Nwoko


Prince Ned Nwoko is a Nigerian lawyer, politician and humanitarian. He was a member of the House of Representatives between 1999 and 2003 representing Aniocha North-South and Oshimili North-South. He is the first Nigerian to visit the South Pole, Antarctica.

Early life and education

Ned Nwoko was born into the Nwoko royal family, Idumuje Ugboko kingdom in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State. His early education was in Nigeria. He moved to the United Kingdom and got his first degree in law and history at the University of Keele, Staffordshire UK. He also attended King's College London, culminating in a post graduate class with an LLM in Maritime and Commercial law. Nwoko was subsequently called to the English bar, at Lincoln's Inn.

Career

Nwoko began his legal career as a prosecutor for the crown and qualified as a solicitor of the supreme court of England and Wales. He worked at Kumars Solicitors and Pascaldiers & Co Solicitors before establishing Ned Nwoko & Co Solicitors in London.
Nwoko was secretary general, Nigerian legal practitioners UK and was visiting adviser, citizens’ advice bureau, based in London. He received an Honorary Doctorate degree in Letters by Commonwealth University College, Belize and honorary doctorate degree in science by the Federal University of Petroleum Resources Effurun FUPRE, Delta state.
Nwoko returned to Nigeria in December 1998 to contribute to the enthronement of a viable democratic institution in the country following the military disengagement from power, after long years of military dictatorship.

Politics

Ned Nwoko made a remarkable entry into Nigeria's political turf when he was elected member of the House of Representatives between 1999 and 2003. He represented Aniocha / Oshimili federal constituency, making an impressive showing in the legislative house.
Ned Nwoko was part of those instrumental to the initiation of the London and Paris Club Loans into Nigeria. He authored the reports that led to Nigeria government’s discontinuation of monthly deductions from states’ allocations and commencement of refunds to States.
Through his Law firm, Ned Nwoko Solicitors and his Company, he investigated the multinational creditors and discovered discrepancies in loan repayments, and this resulted in the refund of the first tranches of loan during Obasanjo administration. He also charged the Federal government to court on behalf of 774 Local governments for the refund of illegal deductions and obtained judgment of $3.2billion for the local governments. The Federal government of Nigeria has started refunding the monies in line with the court judgment of 2013.
Nwoko also served on the Vision 2010 Committee and is a member of the capital market. He served as Chairman of the External Committee of Vision 2010. Nwoko is also the Chairman of Project Tourism Nigeria.

Malaria eradication advocacy

Ned Nwoko is a strong advocate of Malaria eradication in Africa. He is the initiator of the Ned Nwoko Malaria Eradication Foundation. He flagged off the Ned Nwoko Malaria Eradication campaign via a symbolic expedition to the Antarctica in January, 2020. The Foundation is supporting the existing efforts of vaccine development by funding a research for the anti-malaria vaccine through a partnership with leading universities in Africa.

Mount Delta

Nwoko is the founder of the tourism destination Mount Delta, one of 21 tourism sites approved by Delta state government. The tourist site consists of museum, farm, zoo, fishponds, poultry and a 9-hole golf course.

Philanthropy

Through his foundation, , he has contributed to the empowerment and education of youths of his constituency, senatorial district and state. In 2019, he donated $273,000 for the rehabilitation of failed portions of the road linking the South Eastern Nigeria to the nation’s capital, Abuja. In 2019, he pledged the sum of $200,000 to UNESCO to support the development of sports in West Africa.

Personal life

Ned Nwoko married Nigerian Nollywood actress Regina Daniels in 2019 as his sixth wife. A girl he married at 19. On the 31st of May 2020, Ned announced that he was expecting a baby with his current wife.

Awards and recognition