He holds a Ph.D. from the Bayreuth International School of African Studies in Germany and a graduate degree in philosophy from the University of Calabar in Nigeria.

[2] Influenced by the writings of Paul Kurtz, Igwe is a champion of humanist values, and in particular, the importance of rationalism, scientific skepticism, secular ethics, and human rights-centred liberal democracy.

Igwe was raised in southeastern Nigeria, and describes his household as being strictly Catholic in the midst of a "highly superstitious community," according to an interview in the Gold Coast Bulletin.

[12] In 2009, Igwe represented the International Humanist and Ethical Union at the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights in Banjul, Gambia, where he spoke out on the IHEU's behalf against caste-based discrimination in Africa.

[13] In his talk, Igwe brought attention to discrimination against the Osu, a group of people perceived by some to be of lower class, who Igwe says "continue to suffer discrimination and indignity, particularly in the areas of marriage and family, right to own property and inheritance, access to land, political rights and representation, education, development, infrastructure, and distribution of basic amenities.

[14] On 11 January 2011, while attempting to rescue two children who were victims of witchcraft accusation in Uyo Akwa State in southern Nigeria, Igwe was "imprisoned and beaten by police,"[16] in an effort, according to Sahara Reporters, by the state governor Godswill Akpabio, to begin "clamping down on activists involved in the rescue of children accused of witchcraft.

He proposes that, in addition to widespread education about the real causes of misfortune, "There should be heavy penalties including suspension and summary dismissal for the head of any village, or district where an alleged witch is attacked or killed.

"[22] Igwe's activism against witchcraft accusations has included lobbying for the enforcement of a law in Nigeria that prohibits accusing children of witchcraft,[23] which has led to conflict with Pentecostal group Liberty Foundation Gospel Ministries and in particular Pastor Helen Ukpabio, who has been criticized by Igwe and others, according to a New York Times article, for her teachings "having contributed to the torture or abandonment of thousands of Nigerian children—including infants and toddlers—suspected of being witches and warlocks.

"[24] On 29 July 2009, Igwe was scheduled to speak at a meeting in Calabar, Nigeria, "condemning the abandonment, torture and killing of children alleged to be witches.

"[25] As he was about to deliver his talk, members of the Liberty Gospel Church, more than 150 people, invaded the meeting and attacked Igwe, who was "beaten and robbed, relieved of his camera, money and mobile phone before managing to escape to a nearby police station to seek help.

[1] Responding to criticism by Igwe and other activists, Ukpabio told The New York Times reporter Mark Oppenheimer that "her filmic depictions of possessed children, gathering by moonlight to devour human flesh" (as seen in her film End of the Wicked) were not meant to be taken literally, and stated, according to Oppenheimer, that the BBC documentary Saving Africa's Children "exaggerates or invents the problem of child abandonment.

[32] Igwe presented a poster at the Sixth World Skeptics Congress (18–20 May 2012) in Berlin, Germany, with graphic accounts of the trials that he and many of his supporters have faced in Africa while protesting the persecution and killing of children and minorities, and the failures on the part of law enforcement and religious leaders to challenge such atrocities.

[33] On 12 July 2012, Igwe participated in a panel discussion at The Amaz!ng Meeting (TAM), "From Witch-burning to God-men: Supporting Skepticism Around the World.

"[34][35] Igwe's presentation addressed the issue of poverty driving both the supply of and demand for self-styled exorcists, which preys on desperate communities and results in the abandonment or neglect of children.

[34] With panelist Eran Segev (then-President, Australian Skeptics) and moderator Brian Thompson (Outreach Director, JREF), Igwe discussed his efforts in human rights advocacy and the deleterious effects of superstition and witchcraft accusation in Nigeria, Ghana, and Malawi.

He attended a panel discussion with Petr Jan Vinš, a priest from the Old Catholic Church, who spoke about bringing more critical thinking to religion.

"In some cases, religion drives many Africans to extraordinary length: to attack other human beings, to commit ritual killing, targeting those living with albinism, those with a humpback, and as I recently learned, those with a bald head.

"[40] At the JREF's The Amaz!ng Meeting (TAM) in July 2013, Igwe spoke on a panel on "Supporting Skepticism Around the World.

On 1 July, he presented the case for critical thinking in primary schools to fifty teachers in the Ibadan local government area of Nigeria.

The project aims to offer counselling and therapeutic programmes as well as a sense of community and belonging to members, regardless of their religious or clerical background.

[47] Igwe was appointed as a research fellow[broken anchor] of the James Randi Educational Foundation, where he continues working toward the goal of responding to the deleterious effects of superstition, advancing skepticism throughout Africa and around the world.