Mabati Cornell Kiswahili announces prize for African Literature

By ADA DIKE

In a bid to appreciate writing in African languages and encourage translation from, between and into African languages, a new Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature has been announced.

The announcement was made on November 22, 2014 at the Ake Art and Books Festival held in Abeokuta, the Ogun State, Nigeria.

Supporting literature and literacy, according to the Director of Mabati Rolling Mills, Kenya, Sarit Shah, “Supporting literature and literacy is crucial to the development of a thriving culture, and Mabati Rolling Mills is proud to provide financial support for the foundation of a new venture in African language publishing. The new prize for Kiswahili Literature seeks to reward East African writers, artists and thinkers who, through their work, encourage literacy at all levels of East African society. We believe it is vital to reconnect the world of ideas with the practical world of business and commerce, and to do so with relevance to the communities which have been pivotal to success of our business in East Africa for over 50 years.”

Also speaking, the Director of International Initiatives at Cornell University’s Office of the Vice Provost for International Affairs, Laurie Damiani, stated that the office “is pleased to co-sponsor this exciting new initiative, Under the leadership of Vice Provost Fredrik Logevall, we have taken steps to expand our robust array of international opportunities for the Cornell community and to provide additional avenues to deepen their understanding of our diverse global society. It is an honour to be part of an effort that promotes vibrant literary traditions and encourages meaningful interaction between the peoples of East Africa.”

Meanwhile, the Board Member Ngugi Wa Thiong’o said that: “The Mabati-Cornell prize is a major intervention in the struggle for writing in African languages, for their place and visibility in the global sun of literary imagination. Prizes have generally been used to drown African Literature in African languages under a Europhone flood. With the Mabati-Cornell prize the dreams of Diop, A.C. Jordan, Obi Wali and others are very much alive. I hope that this prize becomes an invitation for other African languages to do the same and much more.”

In the same vein, the co-founder Mukoma Wa Ngugi said that the “prize recognizes that all languages are created equal and no one language should thrive at the expense of the other. But beyond that recognition, the Prize sets a historical precedent for African philanthropy by Africans and shows that African philanthropy can and should be at the center of African cultural production.”

The Cornell Assistant Professor of English added that: “The prize recognizes that all languages are created equal and no one language should thrive at the expense of others. But beyond that recognition, the prize sets an historical precedent for African philanthropy by Africans and shows that African philanthropy can and should be at the center of African cultural production.

Primarily supported by Mabati Rolling Mills of Kenya (a subsidiary of the Safal Group), the office of the Vice Provost for International Affairs at Cornell University and the Africana Studies Center at Cornell University, the inaugural prize award will hold October next year.

“The prize will be awarded to the best unpublished manuscripts or books in Kiswahili published within two years of the award year in fiction, poetry and memoir, and graphic novels. First-prize winners receive $5,000 in the categories of prose and poetry; second prize in any genre is $3,000 and third prize is $2,000.

“The winning entry will be published in Kiswahili by East African Educational Publishers, and the best book of poetry will be translated and published by the Africa Poetry Book Fund. Award ceremonies will be held at Cornell and in Kenya and Tanzania. The three prize-winning writers will spend a week in residence at Cornell and a week at an additional partner institution,” the organisers added.

Board of Trustees include: Abdilatif Abdalla (Chair), Mukoma Wa Ngugi, Lizzy Attree, Happiness Bulugu, Walter Bgoya, Henry Chakava, Chege Githiora, Carole Boyce Davies, Rajeev Shah and Ngugu Wa thiong’o, among others.