Latest

Radio West’s Fred Mugira made Uganda proud in winning the tourism award at the CNN Multichoice African Journalist Award 2009 held in Durban, South Africa over the weekend.

Mugira won the award for his revealing but light-hearted piece, “Riding boda boda in Uganda”.

“It is a great honour to win this award and it will spur me on to greater things,” Mugira said after the awards.

Mugira is Radio West’s news editor but his winning entry was published in South Africa’s Guardian & Mail online edition.

Kenyan journalist John-Allan Namu scooped two category awards and the overall CNN/MultiChoice African Journalist of the Year Award on a night to celebrate African journalism.

In accepting the Television Feature Award for his piece, “In the Shadow of the Mungiki,” Namu said he wished he had won for a more uplifting story.

The awards, which were launched in 1995, have grown in stature and are becoming the standard by which journalists on the continent are measured.

Other notable winners were Beauregard Tromp for his piece on the xenophobic violence that swept across South Africa earlier this year.

Kenya’s Violet Otundi’s TV piece depicting the breakdown of the sewer system in Embakassi, Nairobi, won her a medal.

Otundi dedicated her award to her sister who had been buried hours earlier.

Originally published: New Vision Online

For his prize, Anas took home a cash prize and certificate of commendation.   Twenty-five journalists were awarded at this year’s awards ceremony, with Kenyan Television Journalist, John-Allan Namu, winning the top prize.

According to a statement from the organisers, John-Allan, a reporter for Kenya Television Network, won for his stories “In the shadow of the Mungiki” and “Inside Story: Scars and Sufurias”, which were chosen from among 1,665 entries from 38 countries in Africa.

John-Allan was also a winner in two categories, the Television News Award and Television Features Award, representing a first in the history of the competition.

For his award, Jonh-Allan will visit the CNN Centre in Atlanta to attend a three-week CNN Journalism Fellowship, along with the prize awarded to all category winners, which consists of a laptop, printer and a cash prize.

Winners in the individual competition categories are: Tolu Ogunlesi, Contributing Editor for Glide Magazine, Nigeria — Arts and Culture; Ethar El-Katatney, Business Today, Egypt — Economics and Business; Violet Otindo, K24 Television, Kenya — Environment; Rajen Bablee, Samedi Plus, Mauritius — Francophone General News;  Viviane Tiendrébéogo, Radiodiffusion Télévision du Burkina Faso — Francophone News, TV/Radio; Nicaise Kibel'bel Oka, Les Coulisses, The Democratic Republic of the Congo — Free Press Africa;  Anna-Maria Lombard, Health-e-News Service for 3rd Degree broadcast on e.tv, South Africa - HIV/AIDS Reporting in Africa; Paul McNally, Men's Health Magazine, South Africa — MSD Health & Medical; Halden Krog, The Times, South Africa — Mohamed Amin Photographic award; Ernesto Bartolomeu, Televisao Publica de Angola — Portuguese Language General News.

Others are: Beauregard Tromp, The Star, South Africa — Print General News;  Sammy Muraya, Radio Metro FM, Kenya — Radio News General; Ayodeji Adeyemi, Tell Magazine, Nigeria —  Sports; John-Allan Namu and James Moturi Mogaka, Kenya Television Network — TV — General News, Features and Current Affairs.

The award for TV, General News Bulletin Award went to John Benson Mwangi and John-Allan Namu of the Kenya Television Network, while the Tourism Award was won by Fredrick Mugira, Freelance for Mail & Guardian Online, South Africa

Other journalists who won and were commended together with Anas are Biaou Daniel Valérien Adje, ORTB, — Parakou, Benin; Nicola De Chaud and Odette Schwegler, Backyard Productions for Carte Blanche, South Africa; Hazel Friedman, Special Assignment, SABC South Africa; Boniface Mwangi, Expression Today, Kenya; Elshadai Negash, Freelance for Fortune Newspaper, Ethiopia; LuÃs Nhachote, Zambeze, Mozambique; Alain Zongo, L'Observateur Paalga, Burkina Faso.

Originally published: Graphic Ghana

Next year South Africa will be featured as the "Market Focus country" at the 2010 London Book Fair and African writing will be showcased at the Gothenburg Book Fair.

The African 'Greats'-Achebe, Ngugi, Soyinka, Gordimer, Okot p'Bitek- have given way to a new roster of names - Chimamanda Adichie, Chris Abani, Helon Habila, Binyavanga Wainaina, Sefi Atta, Monica Arac de Nyeko, Chika Unigwe, Brian Chikwava - who have become the new faces of contemporary African writing.

This explosion of literary talent and publishing opportunities might be likened to a similar one that accompanied the heady post-independence days of the 1960s. But in spite of all the inspiring and exciting happenings of recent years, there still remain nagging questions regarding who exactly are the proper 'gatekeepers' of African literary tradition and production.

In a 2008 interview published recently in Transition magazine (Issue 100), Chinua Achebe, speaking about the early covers of his classic, Things Fall Apart said: "...I have a general sense that we, African writers, have been presented as oddities." He referred to the cover of the original 1958 Heinemann edition as a "questionable depiction of strangeness."

In a January 16, 1959 pre-publication announcement of TFA in the New York Times Book Review, he is referred to as "Miss Achebe", and in the blurb that accompanies the first African Writers Series edition, published in the early '60s, his Igbo ethnic group is referred to as the "Obi tribe". Regarding that early error, Achebe points out that "that error persisted. You sometimes even see it running through to this day."

Such "questionable depictions of strangeness" are to be expected in a world where the production (editorial and publishing aspects at least) of 'canonized' African Literature is largely in the hands of 'outsiders.' Speaking during the Publishers' Panel at the 2009 Cadbury Conference at the Centre of West African Studies at the University of Birmingham, British-Ghanaian Publisher (and former Commissioning Editor of the Heinemann African Writers' Series) Becky Ayebia-Clarke (who is now running her own press, Ayebia Publishing) described how her displeasure with the cover of Tsitsi Dangaremba's debut novel, Nervous Conditions (The Women's Press, England, 1988) - another questionable depiction of strangeness - led her to produce a radically different cover for the Ayebia edition (2004). She felt that the image portrayed on the original cover did not do justice to the strong, sassy characterization of the novel's heroine.

But such "strangenesses" are to be expected when a significant part of what is known globally as "African Literature" lies outside the hands of its creators and in the tight grip of "institutions" that seem to possess fixed ideas about what African literature should or should not be, and what "authentic" African "characters" can or cannot do.

In Birmingham, Ms. Ayebia-Clarke also spoke of the inspiration behind her publishing an anthology of love stories written by African women (African Love Stories, Ayebia, 2006) - her dismay at realizing that there was a scarcity of daring love stories featuring African characters. Apparently, at least in the eyes of most publishers, it is more authentic for Africans to make war than to make love. The synopsis for the book as featured on Ayebia Publishing's website describes it as "a radical departure from conventional anthologies and the theme of love is aimed at debunking preconceived notions about African women as impoverished victims, whilst showing their strength, complexity and diversity." One of those stories (Ugandan Monica Arac de Nyeko's Under the Jambula Tree), which dealt with the subversive (at least in an African context) theme of lesbian love, won the 2007 Caine Prize for African Writing.

At the recent "What's Culture Got to Do With It" conference in June organised by the Nordic Africa Institute in Uppsala, Sweden, Professor Raisa Simola, presenting a paper that touched on Uzodinma Iweala's 2006 novel Beasts of No Nation, informed the audience that while BONN has been translated into Finnish, its revered 'ancestor', Things Fall Apart, has yet to be translated. The interesting question therefore is - who makes these translation decisions, and on what basis?

Also at the Uppsala conference, Nigerian Professor J.O.J Nwachukwu Agbada complained of the gross disservice done to scholars and academics based in Africa as a result of the fact that the bulk of cultural production (in this case, literary publishing) is managed from the West, thus ensuring that many books by African writers and journals on African Literature/Culture are unavailable to Africans living on the continent. These books win awards and establish their positions in the African literary canon in the West, but most Africans remain unaware of them.

But all of this is not to take away from the obvious fact that these are interesting and even exciting times for African writing. African literature (an endlessly debatable term in itself) is in the middle of the kind of renaissance that characterised Indian writing in the 1990s. We are witnessing the strong rise of a literary movement, defined not so much by grand nationalistic or ideological themes (as was largely the case in the 60s and 70s) as by a fervent and uncomplicated desire for Africans to tell their own stories, whatever those stories may be, however marginal they may appear to a world that wants to talk only about African poverty, famine, wars and child soldiers.

One of the most vocal champions of this "telling" is Chimamanda Adichie, and she appears to be succeeding. A Nigerian friend of mine living in Australia recently told me that an Irish friend also living in Australia told him, "Everything I know about Nigeria I learned from reading two books - Purple Hibiscus and Half of a Yellow Sun."

The last few years have seen the emergence of innovative independent literary collectives and publishing houses based on the African continent - Cassava Republic and Kachifo in Nigeria, Storymoja and Kwani in Kenya, Chimurenga and Wordsetc in South Africa - all of whom are committed to taking Africa's literary talent to the world, using every available means, and certainly not shying away from exploiting the possibilities of the internet revolution.

And by the end of 2010, novels by the following "new" African writers will have been published by some of the biggest names in contemporary publishing: Petina Gappah, Brian Chikwava, Peter Akinti, Chika Unigwe, Adaobi Nwaubani, Teju Cole, Kachi Ozumba and Lola Shoneyin. Six of those will be debut novels.

Most interesting however, and worthy of reflection, is this surprising fact: all but one of the eight names mentioned above live outside the African continent.

This is often interpreted to mean that there are two kinds of African Writers - 'home-based' and 'diaspora' writers, and that the Global Publishing Factory prefers to 'employ' African writers based abroad to tell the stories of Africa. That argument of course is a debatable one; the fact that writers abroad get more publishing opportunities than home-based ones might simply be attributable to geographical proximity to the 'centers' of publishing, and not to any prefabricated preferences on the part of the publishers.

Debates like this will continue to dominate discussions about contemporary African writing. Geographical location and exile, language, authenticity, even the supposedly simple matter of "who is an African writer?" will be difficult issues to ignore.

Chinua Achebe perhaps summed it up best when referring to the new Penguin African Writers' Series, of which he has been named as Editorial Advisor. He remarked: "The last five hundred years of European contact with Africa produced a body of literature that presented Africa in a very bad light and now the time has come for Africans to tell their own stories.

The Standard Group has done it again.

It was joy, dance and jubilation at a ceremony in the International Convention Centre, Durban where KTN reporter, John Allan Namu scooped the coveted CNN MultiChoice African Journalist of the Year Award 2009.

His colleagues, John Benson Mwangi, a senior cameraman with KTN, and James Moturi Mogaka, also bagged an award each.

The trio was among 25 finalists from 12 countries picked for the prestigious awards.

"I feel immensely honoured. I never thought this would happen. This goes to show that anyone from any walk of life can stand among giants," said Mr Namu after receiving the top prize.

KTN reporter John Allan Namu stands tall after winning the CNN African Journalist of the Year Award at the International Convention Centre, Durban, South Africa, on Saturday. Photo: Courtesy Multichoice/Standard

Namu won for his stories In the shadow of the Mungiki and Inside Story: Scars and Sufurias, which were chosen from among 1,665 entries from 38 nations across the continent.

He was a winner in two categories, the Television News Award and Television Features Award.

This is a first in the history of the competition where the top winner scoops two awards.

Mr Mwangi co-won the Television — General News — News Bulletin Award with Namu for the well packaged Inside Story: Scars and Sufurias.

"In this news story Namu reminds the audience that while politicians might have held hands and formed a coalition Government, the deep wounds of Kenya’s worst violence in memory have not healed," said the judge. Mr Mogaka also bagged the Television — General News — Feature/Current Affairs Award with Namu for the story In the Shadow of the Mungiki.

In arriving at the decision to award the duo, the judge said: "Namu goes beyond the stereotype of the Mungiki as a criminal gang to show how the group has mutated. He shows how politicians were manipulating young people trying to find meaning to their lives. The reporter’s composure, his research and excellent use of images and sound to tell the story made him a winner."

The awards, which rotate location each year in tribute to their pan-African credentials, returned to South Africa and were held at a ceremony hosted by CNN and MultiChoice at The International Convention Centre, Durban on Saturday.

Mr Tony Maddox, managing director, CNN International and Nolo Letele, CEO, MultiChoice South Africa, presented Namu with the award.

Chairperson of the judging panel, Azubuike Ishiekwene, executive director, Punch Nigeria Ltd said: "The reporter went beyond the surface, stripped the stereotype and combined sound, images and research to bring new insight and meaning to the story. It’s an excellent example of the kind of journalism that the continent badly needs."

Maddox said: "Tonight’s journalists join an ever-increasing number of professionals recognised by their peers over the last 14 years. They have become part of a community of excellence, representing the very best in African journalism and maintaining the highest standards of journalistic integrity."

worthy winner

Letele said: "Congratulations to Namu, a worthy winner and a wonderful example to his peers and young journalists. Being awarded the prestigious African Journalist of the Year means excelling in a highly competitive environment."

Other Kenyans awarded at the ceremony were Ms Violet Otindo of K24 Television (Environment Award) and Mr Sammy Muraya of Metro FM won the Radio General News Award.

Via: www.easternstandard.net