SEVHAGE Publishers and SEVHAGE Literary & Development Initiative are delighted to announce the winners and runners-up for the SEVHAGE Literary Prizes 2024, celebrating outstanding achievements of fantastic writers in African literature across fiction, creative non-fiction, literary criticism and poetry.

This year’s competition saw an incredible number of exceptional submissions, showcasing the talent, creativity, and depth of African writers globally. After a rigorous judging process led by esteemed scholars Professors Hyginus Ekwuazi and Maria Ajima, alongside an exceptional panel of other judges and readers, we are proud to reveal the winners and runners-up for this year’s prizes.

K & L Prize for Fiction 2024

The K & L Prize, founded in 2018 by Dr Myles Idoko Ojabo, celebrates short fiction that addresses mental health themes, reducing stigma while inspiring positive stories. This year’s winners and runners-up demonstrated incredible talent and originality.

• Winners: [N500,000]
  ✨ The Thing with Feathers by Ekpenyong Kosisochukwu
  ✨ This, too, will pass by Amanda Ilozumba
  
• Runners-Up [N20,000]
  ✨ Alkaline by Queen Deraa
  ✨ Book of Confrontation by Hajaarh Muhammad Bashar
  ✨ Neneh by Uchenna Ekweremadu
  ✨ Nurturing a Child by Chinaza Agomuo
  ✨ The Water Scar by Enit’ayanfe Ayosojumi Akinsanya

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Eugenia Abu/SEVHAGE International Prize for Creative Non-Fiction 2024

This prize honours celebrated journalist and writer Eugenia Abu and celebrates creative nonfiction that inspires, challenges, and provides profound insights into the human experience.

• Winners [N1,000,000]
  ✨ We Bought an Album in June by Nana Sule
  ✨ The Protest Lamb by Blessing Ojo
  ✨ Compass Rose by Abasi-maenyin Esebre
  
• Runners-Up:
  ✨ Afụnwaelotanna by Chinonso Nzeh
  ✨ Crossing the Road by Olaposi Halim
  ✨ Five Things Mother Did Not Prepare Me For by Sumaiyah Muhammad Salisu
  ✨ Grave Visits and Other Worries by Sanusi A. Sanusi
  ✨ I Have Come to Understand That a Daughter’s Marriage is Also as Difficult as Giving Birth to Her by Chinua Ezenwa-Ohaeto
  ✨ Motherhood by Summaya Jaeh
  ✨ Rinsing Death by Nasiba Babale
  ✨ Riverside Resurgence by Juliet Ugbedeojo
  ✨ To Ife, My Life in Songs by Chinaza James-Ibe

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E. E. Sule/SEVHAGE Prize for African Literary Criticism 2024

This prize honours critical thought and analysis in African literature, named after the distinguished scholar and writer Professor Sule Emmanuel Egya (E. E. Sule).

• Winners [N285,000]
  ✨ In Defense of Leopartitude: A Case to Update an Indigenous African Literary Theory by Bizuum Yadok
  
• Runners-Up:
  ✨ An Appraisal of the Poetry of the Ìkòyí-ẹ̀ṣọ́ Lineage by Ademuyiwa Adewale
  ✨ Muddling the Waters: Matriarchal Failure and Patriarchal Intervention in Chika Unigwe’s The Middle Daughter and Aiwanisen Odafen’s Tomorrow I Become A Woman by Gber, Ebinehita Petrina
  ✨ The Pen-Pusher and the Gun-Wielders: Portraiture of Nigerian Military in Idris Amali’s Poetry by Onyebuchi Nwosu
  ✨ The Manifestation of the Tripartite Psyche in Unoma Azuah’s Edible Bones: A Freudian Psychoanalytic Criticism by Terese Uwuave
  

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SEVHAGE-JAY LIT/HYGINUS EKWUAZI POETRY PRIZE 2024

Winners [N38,000]
✨ Oil on Canvas by Aman Bibi Gray
✨ Four Incantations for the Earth by Arikewusola Abdul Awal

SEVHAGE-JAY LIT/S. AGEMA HONOURABLE POEMS 2024
Winners [N5,000]
✨ State of Emergency by Timi Sanni
✨ Three Deaths by Salama Wainaina

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The Vivian Ihaza [SEVHAGE] Teen Prize 2024: A prize in honour of Vivian Ihaza an unpublished poem of not more than 50 lines by a Nigerian (aged 12-17). For a prize pool worth N500,000 in cash and other rewards. To be announced at the Benue Book and Arts Festival holding in Makurdi (20th to 22nd February 2025 – details at http://bbaaf.com).

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The awards and certificates for the winners will be presented at the Benue Book and Arts Festival holding in Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria (20th to 22nd February, 2025).

This year’s competition has been remarkable, and none of it would have been possible without the support of our incredible partners. From financial contributions to mentorship and promotional support, your efforts have ensured that the SEVHAGE Prizes continue to celebrate excellence in African literature, inspire critical conversations, and empower writers to share their stories.

We are deeply thankful to Dr Myles Idoko Ojabo, the initiator and sponsor of the K & L Prize for Fiction, whose vision and generosity have brought so many important stories to light. We acknowledge Daisy Odey and the ALINEA Initiative, with whom we built the foundation for the Creative Non-Fiction Prize. We also remain grateful to Mrs Eugenia Abu, an inspiration behind the Eugenia Abu/SEVHAGE International Prize for Creative Non-Fiction, and Professor Sule Emmanuel Egya (E. E. Sule), whose legacy inspires the African Literary Criticism Prize. We are also grateful to the Benue Book and Arts Festival and its team for the platform to spread the wonderful work we do under these prizes.

Special thanks go to our judges, Professors Hyginus Ekwuazi and Maria Ajima, Deborah Oluniran, Oko Owoicho, Torkwase Igbana, S. Su’eddie Vershima Agema, and others. We are grateful to Dr Agatha Agema, Kukogho Iruesiri Samson, the African and Black Creatives for Development (ABC4D), Goethe-Institut, James Murua, Journal of African Youth Literature, Dr Victor Oladokun, Dapo Olorunyomi, The Eugenia Abu Media Centre, Dami Ajayi, Tolu Daniel, Konya Shamsrumi, Mustapha Enesi, Otene Ogwuche, and the entire Nigerian writing community, for their invaluable contributions and partnership. Your unwavering belief in the transformative power of literature and storytelling has been a cornerstone of this journey.

We celebrate the collective effort that has brought us this far. Thank you for standing with us, believing in this vision, and contributing to a platform that amplifies African voices and shines a spotlight on critical issues. We look forward to continuing this partnership as we nurture and celebrate creativity across the continent and beyond. Together, we are building something extraordinary.

The SEVHAGE Prizes continue to celebrate creativity, innovation, and the transformative power of literature while championing African voices and stories on a global stage. In the coming days, we shall have panels and conversations that celebrate the winning works and the authors. Stay connected with us here at www.sevhage.com for updates, more prizes, celebrations, and insights into future editions of the prizes. Also follow us on social media channels at @sevhage.

With warm regards, on behalf of the judges and everyone at SEVHAGE,

S. E. Su’eddie Vershima Agema
President, SEVHAGE