storymoja Hay fest 2012, sawa sawa!

It was an unrealistically beautiful experience. A packed programme with so many fantastic options from Lemn Sissay the larger than life performance poet, Dinaw Mengestu, winner of 2007 Guardian first book award for his novel,Children of the Revolution to Sitawa Namwilie,author of Cut off my Tongue. The 13th to 17th September 2012 will hardly be forgotten.

The poets at Lemn Sissay's class, storymoja hay fest 2012 The winners of the 2012 BN Poetry Award Susan Piwang and Paula Biraaro, attended the festival as part of their prize and surprisingly blew me away when they recited their winning pieces during the poetry gala on the morning of the 14th at the storymoja amphitheater, Nairobi Museum. By the way, that museum puts ours to shaaaaaaaaaame. There you can carry out parallel workshops, play music and charge an entry fee without the fear of the artefacts crumbling under too much wind. During the effervescent Lemn Sissay’s poetry masterclass, he said one important thing, among many. The stage should be the last place a poem should be. Every poet will remember that. And then Dinaw, sigh, what a writer! I told him that he is the type of writer that can easily write with a female protagonist without the readers figuring it out. His first novel Children of the Revolution started his career and from the deliberate and careful way he selects his words before speaking, it is no doubt his career will make him leap bounds. Oh, and he hates these over used words like She smiled. He was like, what kind of smile? It should be specific to the character. I chaired the discussion of his book and fund out, he also believes in writing for social change! Yeiiii!

Bev and Dinaw Mengestu after his writing masterclass The second night we were hosted at a grand dinner at Muthoni Garland’s house (read palace). You have never seen anything like it. The founder of the storymoja Hay Fest cut no corners when it came to building her home sweeter than home. My eyes got drunk with all the magnificence. It was a cosy dinner where I got to talk to Giles Foden who by the way doesn’t talk much, no sir! Curt answers, well, at least I got a photo.

Bev and Giles Foden, author of Last King of Scotland (Muthoni's house in background) Lots of artists, Precious Williams, Lola Shoneyin, Akil,Eurig the Welsh poet, Lauri Kubuitsile, a prolific and most down to earth writer from the continent I have met. Then the unmistakable John Sibi Okumu of Zain Africa Challenge who talks on and on and on, I guess to match his stature. He is an interesting person to listen to. It was gwangamanga mwah mwah mwah. Can there be a Hay Festival in Uganda? You tell me. Susan, Paula and I were the only Ugandans from Uganda , so make sure you're there next time, you will love it-I did!

Some of us at the British Council farewell reception

Carson prize for poetry and prose-15 Nov deadline

Mixed Fruit Magazine is pleased to announce the Carson Prize in Poetry or Prose, a writing contest that will present one winning writer with a $100 award and publication in our first print issue, to be published in early 2013.

Warthog at Queen Elizabeth National Park, 2009, Photo by BNN The Carson Prize is open to all writers in all genres. We’ll read work from established or emerging authors. We welcome submissions from writers of any nationality. As with our general submissions, we will judge entries on merit alone–all submissions should exclude names or any other identifying information. This contest is free to enter–there is no reading fee whatsoever. We welcome entrants to submit up to five poems of any length or up to two prose pieces (8,000 words or less per piece). If you feel that your submission blurs the line between prose and poetry, select one of the categories and we assure you it will be passed on to the appropriate editors. The author whose work is deemed most worthy of the Carson Prize will be awarded $100 and publication in the print issue, along with two contributor copies. Only one monetary award will be given, but three finalists will be published in the print issue and will receive one contributor copy, and all entries will be considered for publication in either the print issue or a future online issue. We do accept simultaneous submissions, but if your piece is accepted elsewhere, you must withdraw it immediately. This contest is only open to writing that has not been previously published. To enter, visit our submissions manager and submit your piece under the Carson Prize category. We will not accept entries via email or post. This contest is fee-free, but we will have two options at the time of submission: you may enter with no fee at all, or you may choose to include a donation with your entry. Donations will in no way influence the judges’ decisions. Please ensure that your entry does not include your name or other identifying information at any point, even in the file name. We’ll know who you are when the time comes–we promise. CONTACT INFORMATION: For queries: mixedfruitmag@gmail.com Website: http://mixedfruitmagazine.com/Carson

Feminist Leadership Institute Novemver 2012, Nairobi

The fourth Feminist Leadership and Movement Building Institute is a five-day course designed to strengthen feminist leadership, strategies, and collective power for social transformation in Africa.

The leader of an elephant pack is a female, called the Matriarch The Institute will combine reflection on the current political landscape as well as past organising strategies for women's rights in Africa by using a trans-movement building approach. Looking at diverse movements in Africa and globally, participants will be able to relate some of the experiences and lessons from these movements to their own contexts, countries, and regions. This Institute will be held in collaboration with GROOTS Kenya and Akili Dada. Course Content The movement building approach challenges groups to critically assess how they have organised themselves to achieve their social justice goals. In particular, it enables participants to explore their political agenda, involvement of constituents, and strategies for collective action underpinned by reflection. Using a movement-building lens, the process will allow participants to build their knowledge on the theoretical underpinnings of movement building, synthesised from analyses of global movements. Additionally, participants will identify the different intersections, interactions, common spaces, and challenges that social movements encounter when collaborating on issues of women's human rights. From this, they will critically assess pre-existing resources of the women's movement in Africa. They will also identify and explore concrete strategies to strengthen links between movements to advance women's human rights more collectively. The Institute will cover the following topics: - Social movements and power-concepts and theory - Movements, organizations, and leadership-theory and practice - Current issues and challenges of the women's movement in Africa - Women in peace and conflict resolution - Women's political participation - Assessing our impact-approaches and tools The Institute will foreground reflection at the personal and institutional levels, which will both enable and challenge participants to strengthen their leadership skills and strategies to effect real change for women's rights and social justice in Africa. Participants To participate you must: - Be a woman between 25 and 45 years of age - Reside or work in East Africa (Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Somaliland, Tanzania, and Uganda)**** - Have a minimum of 3 years of experience working on gender issues, women's rights, development, and/or youth activism (voluntary or employment) - Be able to demonstrate how you will use what you learn at the Institute in your work and how you will continue to participate in follow-up activities - Have a working knowledge of the English language Venue and Dates The fourth Feminist Leadership and Movement Building Institute will be held in Nairobi, Kenya, during 5-9 November 2012 (Begins 9 am on 5 November; Ends 4 pm on 9 November). Travel and Visa Participants are responsible for incurring their travel costs to and from the Institute, and obtaining their own visa. CREA will assist with the visa process by providing a letter of invitation and required visa letters. Costs Tuition, accommodation, and meals for the duration of the Institute will be covered by the organisers. Participants will be required to pay a registration fee of USD 50. Participants must cover their own travel expenses. A limited number of travel scholarships are available on a need basis. Accommodation Accommodation will be on twin-sharing basis. Application Only applicants residing and working in East Africa (Burundi, Djiboutim Eritea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, Somalialand, Tanzania and Uganda) are encouraged to apply. Deadline: 10 September 2012 Applications are due on or before *10 September 2012*. To apply online, click eminist If you experience difficulty with the online method, download the application from CREA's website (www.creaworld.org) and e-mail the completed form to Sushma Luthra at sluthra@creaworld.org or to CREA at crea@creaworld.org. Send any queries to Ms Luthra as well.

Betty Kituyi gives birth to yet another poem

I want you to know how happy I am with my little poem, Falling, having taken the third position in this years’ Beverley Nambozo Poetry Award! The prizes were great thanks to our sponsors!

Birds at Queen Elizabeth National Park, photo by BNN, 2009 The evening of 29th June 2012 when I read my poem to the guests at the poetry evening, I felt like giving birth to it. The message in the poem coincided with the pain of loss of my village mates in Bududa village who had been buried by landslides. At that moment, my poem carried hope for me and for my people and that meant so much to me. My people needed to hear those words ‘ I am learning from the weeping clouds that falling isn’t dying.’ Maybe there is meaning to this death in my village. May be death is not an end. I keep thinking. Since the award, my poem has been shown off to friends, family and organisations and it feels like sharing a new precious baby to the world: My friend Theresa Wolfwood from Canada says it is a powerful poem with no word out of place. Sumeet Glover a UK based poet and a friend to Terry, wrote a lovely commentary about the poem and wants to feature it on his website: www. global poetry.com These are his words: “ yes, I do remember this poem, and it was very much on my mind to reply to that email of yours from few weeks back. I was yet to spend time reflecting on this poem, but on the top of my head, I believe it's a beautiful poem. It is a celebration of feminism and it talks of the freedom every woman deserves, especially in Eastern and African societies where gender roles are strictly restricted. After reading this poem a few times, I thought "only if every woman had this sense of inner and outer freedom to just be whoever she wants to be". So yes, it contains a very powerful message for male-dominated and bigoted societies. On the other hand, it contains a very feminine and engaging sense of hope for other women to let themselves out, to breathe free, to let the rain fall, to get drenched in its waters and to walk home. The essence of this poem is a fearless 'awakening' to a woman's freedom. If there was a choice, this poem could also be renamed "fearless". Only if every woman had this freedom! That is my final thought, especially after I recently heard of my cousin sister in Delhi. Her husband has now turned slightly "kind" to give her "permission" to see her mom once in 4 months. Anyway, she has a choice she doesn't want to take. So "Falling" has an important place to let the fears and terror of women to fall away. I went to the Southbank Centre on Friday last week, and attended "African Utopia" debate. There was a panel of journalists of African descent debating how the West is so ignorant about Africa and how only about 20 or 30% of African population has access to Internet. Therefore, I wanted to ask you, if Betty may be interested in having this poem published on Global Poetry site? (the copyrights remain with the authors, GP doesn't hold any copyrights to others' works) I believe this will be a very important voice for African women, and women in general.’ FEMRITE used falling as a table tent that was marketed in restaurants, hotels, bars schools to promote the literally week of activities from 9th – 13th July 2012. Beatrice Lamwaka and Barbra Oketta used it with students of Jane Francis Secondary school in Masaka during their school visit where it was discussed and recited on 28th July 2012. My friend Cathy, a professor of literature at a university in Kuwait has promised to share the poem with her students! For a small poem that began at a kitchen sink to travel these vast distances and find use and meaning to different people in a small period of time, is quite a profound experience for me! It is like a mother watching her child grow and accomplish his dreams. I am extremely delighted and encouraged by the BN Award. Thank you so much for giving a forum for the inner voices of Ugandan women to be heard! Congratulations Beverley for this great effort!

East African Poetry Anthology

Hello, The BN Poetry Foundation is compiling poems from poets of East Africa for an anthology which will come out in 2013. This has been due to the generous contribution of Prince Claus Foundation. We kindly request you to send up to a maximum of three original poems in English or in a local language with the English translation, from which one or two will be selected. The winners of the BN Poetry Award from 2009 to 2012, will have their winning poems published and they may submit another for consideration if they so please.

Bulago Island, Uganda The theme is open and submissions will be accepted from 1st August 2012 to 1st November 2012. The copyright of these poems will belong to the poets. At the moment, there are consultations with various publishing houses and once a selection has been made, you will be notified. Payment will be made once a publishing house has been identified. Kindly submit poems to bnpoetryaward@mail.com, as Microsoft word attachments in Times New Roman size 12, include your name, email and phone contacts and nationality. We will not be able to acknowledge receipt of submission and only those whose poems have been selected will be notified due to the large number of submissions. This does not mean that we do not appreciate you for taking part in this process. Poets must be from either Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda Tanzania, South Sudan or Uganda. For details on what the BN Poetry Foundation does, visit www.bnpoetryaward.co.ug Kind Regards,\ Beverley Nambozo, for BN Poetry Foundation

ON UBC-TV WITH SUSAN PIWANG-2012 WINNER!

On 10 July 2012, Susan Piwang and I were invited to UBC-TV to talk about the prize, the future of the award and, you know, let people submit their own poems next year. Susan's poem, The Music Man, won the 2012 award and amongst the fabulous prizes, she will also be travelling to the Storymoja Hay Festival in Nairobi in September with the other two winners. She said that she would definitely encourage other poets to submit their poems because well, who knows what direction art will take.

AWARD-GIVING ON JUNE 29TH AT BNPA 2012

Susan Piwang (above), the winner receiving her prize.

Paula Biraaro, second winner receiving her prize.

Betty Kituyi, third winner, receiving her prize.

Rehema Nanfuka, fourth winner receiving her prize.