Poets of African descent worldwide, rejoice for the time to favour you has come! Still wondering why and how? Well, the Arole Agarawu Foundation has opened submissions since the 28th of February for the inaugural Alhaji Arole Agarawu African Poetry Prize and will run until May the 31st of 2026.
While explaining why the prize is named after Alhaji Arole Agarawu (1930s–1995), a prolific West African songwriter and composer whose contributions to Yoruba musical forms, including Sakara, Apala, and Waka, went largely uncredited during his lifetime, renowned poet Adebay Agarau said the prize would become the turning point for the legacy of silence that trailed his career and those of many other today's creatives. Hence, the platform will become their channel of recognition and formal acclaim.
Award categories
The award has two categories, where an equal $1000 will be won. First is the Arole Agarawu African Poetry Prize category, which will award a $1000 to a poet of African descent anywhere in the world, selected by the guest judge. Second is the Arole Grayling Wraith Prize category, which will award a separate $1,000 to a poet living on the African continent, and includes a production-grade video of a selected poem produced by their media partner, Grayling and Wraith. The juice is that while there will be a shortlist of 10 poets, a single poet may be eligible for both.
To know more about the guidelines and eligibility, visit:
Direct any inquiries to info@aroleagarawufoundation.com.
