World Day of Prayer 2026 focuses on Nigeria

Wednesday March 4th 2026

World Day of Prayer 2026 artwork, designed by Gift Amarachi Otta, depicts the daily reality of rural Nigerian women whose lives are marked by endless labour from sunrise to sunset.

The annual inter-denominational World Day of Prayer will be marked on Friday March 6, with services taking place across the diocese, the UK and the world.

The World Day of Prayer is an international, women-led, ecumenical movement that shares the hopes, concerns, and prayers of women from around the globe. Each year, women from a different country craft a service, sharing their unique spiritual journey and culture.

For 2026, the women of Nigeria have created a service that speaks to a need for peace and solace, drawing on their faith and experiences in a world filled with struggles and anxieties.

The Day of Prayer is a powerful demonstration of global solidarity. It begins in Samoa and moves across the world in a continuous wave of prayer, finishing 38 hours later in American Samoa. It truly is a worldwide day of prayer.

The theme of the service this year is ‘I will give you rest’ (Matthew 11:28-30). During the service, the stories are shared of four Nigerian women which inspire us to work towards a world without injustice, insecurity, marginalisation, religious persecution and despair.

These services are open to everyone.

The Rev Louise Bowes, curate in Mossley Parish, Diocese of Connor, is chairperson of the National World Day of Prayer Committee UK.

Find a service (Please note, not all NI services are listed here, others may be found through a search on local media or through church notices)