Library Of Africa and The African Diaspora

Deadline: 30 September 2022

This year, the African Union celebrates its 20th anniversary since the organization’s establishment at the Durban Summit of July 2002. Dubbed AU20, the celebrations are taking place under the theme “Our Africa, Our Future” and will focus on the AU’s initiatives, successes, impact, challenges and the way forward. 

As part of this commemoration, the African Union (AU), in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is hosting a residency programme under the AU20 project for established writers from across Africa to produce a piece of work that celebrates the unity and potential of the African continent.

The writers residency will take the form of a hybrid programme, with two online meetings in October/November 2022 and a two-week physical residency at the Library Of Africa and The African Diaspora (LOATAD) in Accra, Ghana from 14 to 28 November 2022. The residency will culminate in a public event in Accra to showcase and discuss the written work.

Catering to the theme “Our Africa, Our Future”, five writers from the continent will be tasked to interpret the theme in a broad and expansive way across a selected genre, including fiction, narrative non-fiction and poetry. The work will be published in an e-book anthology to be released in early 2023.

The AU20 project aims to elevate the profile of the AU in the minds of Africans, particularly the creative community, and better connect the AU to African citizens. Powered by Africa No Filter, the writers residency will contribute towards bringing the African Union closer to the African people by selecting creative professionals who think outside the box, dare to challenge conventions and offer new and original work through their chosen materials, techniques and subject matters.