Tanzania opens fifth round of Nyerere creative writing awards

Tanga. The government has opened the submission window for the fifth round of the Mwalimu Nyerere National Creative Writing Awards, giving Tanzanian writers more than three months to submit unpublished works in four literary categories.

The window opened on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, and will close on November 30, 2026, with winners expected to be announced and awarded on April 13, 2027, a date that coincides with the birthday of Tanzania’s founding father, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere.

Speaking during the launch in Tanga, Education, Science and Technology Minister Prof Adolf Mkenda said the awards were part of the government’s efforts to promote Kiswahili, writing and reading, while allowing writers to have their work recognised nationally.

The awards cover four categories: novels, poetry, drama and children’s literature.

"The first objective is to promote Kiswahili in writing. We cannot promote a language that has no written works and that people do not read," said Prof Mkenda.

He said the government had also intervened in the publishing sector because writers and publishers had for years faced a limited market for books.

Under the awards, the first-place winner in each category will receive Sh10 million, a certificate, and have their winning work published and distributed by the government.

The second-place winner will receive Sh7 million and a certificate, while the third-place winner will receive Sh5 million and a certificate.

Prof Mkenda said the initiative had already started producing results, with six winning books from previous rounds published and distributed to schools.

He said 262,000 copies had so far been distributed to primary and secondary schools across the country.

"For a writer, the biggest dream is for their work to be read. They may write without even making money, but at least other people should read their work. This has helped," he said.

Prof Mkenda added that the awards were also important in preserving and promoting Tanzania’s history and culture.

"If you do not tell the story of your country, someone else will tell it," he said.

The national awards committee chairperson, Prof Penina Mlama, said the awards had expanded from two categories, novels and poetry, when they were launched in 2022/23 to four categories today.

She urged writers to use the opportunity to submit their works before the deadline.

Prof Mlama said eligible participants must be Tanzanian citizens and submit original works written in Kiswahili that have never been published, including online, in newspapers or through other media.

A writer may submit only one work in one category.

She said works that previously ranked among the top 10 in the awards could not be resubmitted, although their authors could compete with new works.

The rules also set specific requirements for each category: novels should be between 60,000 and 100,000 words, while children’s stories should contain between 250 and 1,000 words and target children aged five to 12.

Drama scripts should run for 40 to 60 minutes, with a maximum of six scenes and six characters.

Prof Mlama also paid tribute to Bishop John Hiluka, a 2026 award winner who died on July 2, 2026.

"We have lost a very important creative writer in our nation. May his soul rest in peace," she said.

The awards are coordinated by the Tanzania Institute of Education under the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology.