MMi Documentary Fellowship opens call to explore ‘Ajé’

The Media Mentoring Initiative Documentary Fellowship for Students has announced the call for applications for its 2026 cohort, inviting undergraduate students across South-West Nigeria to participate in a cultural storytelling programme focused on Ajé in Yoruba cosmology. The fellowship, which debuted in 2025, promotes Yoruba culture and identity among culturally engaged youth through documentary filmmaking and guided mentorship from leading figures in media, culture and indigenous knowledge.

Although Ajé is commonly associated with material wealth, scholars within Yoruba thought describe it as a deeper moral and philosophical principle tied to character, responsibility and destiny. Dr. Kenny Adenugba, an Indigenous Knowledge and Culture Advocate and one of the programme’s Yoruba Thought Leaders, said Ajé transcends financial prosperity. “Ajé is not simply wealth. It is the moral intelligence that determines whether prosperity endures, because in Yorùbá thought, Ajé responds to character,” he explained.

Lead faculty member, Adejuwon Soyinka, an Emmy-nominated investigative journalist and documentary producer, added that the concept carries profound ethical implications. “Ajé is more than wealth; it is the wisdom, discipline and alignment that allow prosperity to flow and endure. Through this fellowship, we support storytellers exploring Ajé as a philosophy of value creation, responsibility and legacy,” he said.

Convener of the Documentary Fellowship, Anikeade Funke-Treasure, emphasised the cultural importance of the theme, noting that Ajé goes far beyond material wealth and reflects ideas of destiny, community, morality and power. She said understanding the concept deeply ensures that younger generations inherit not only the language of Ajé, but the worldview it embodies.

Testimonies from participants in the 2025 pilot cohort highlight the programme’s impact. One of the fellows, Muyiwa Adefenikun, said the experience fundamentally changed how he views culture. He recounted travelling to Abeokuta, learning from industry legends such as Tunde Kelani and Femi Odugbemi, and producing his own documentary on Yorùbá cultural attire, Aṣọ Òkè. According to him, the experience taught him that culture must be carefully observed, respectfully interpreted and truthfully documented.

Tunde Kelani also affirmed the initiative’s significance, stating that the young storytellers are being equipped to shape the future and carry Yorùbá culture powerfully to the world.

Applications for the 2026 MMi-DFS Fellowship are now open to second- and third-year undergraduate students enrolled in tertiary institutions across South-West Nigeria who are passionate about storytelling, culture and documentary filmmaking. The application deadline is the end of February 2026.