Subscribe to our Newsletter

SEVHAGE Publishers and SEVHAGE Literary & Development Initiative have officially unveiled the winners and runners-up of the SEVHAGE Literary Prizes 2024, recognizing exceptional achievements in African literature across fiction, creative non-fiction, literary criticism, and poetry.

This year witnessed an impressive array of submissions from talented African writers worldwide. After a rigorous selection process spearheaded by esteemed scholars Professors Hyginus Ekwuazi and Maria Ajima, alongside judges Deborah Oluniran, Oko Owoicho, and Torkwase Igbana, this is a list of all winners and runner-ups according to their categories: 

K & L Prize for Fiction 2024 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

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

• Afỵnwaelotanna 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

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

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

SEVHAGE Publishers is a Nigerian publishing house and literary development initiative founded in 2012, dedicated to promoting African literature and fostering emerging voices. With over 60 published titles, SEVHAGE collaborates with established and emerging authors to produce works that reflect diverse African narratives. The organization is known for championing creative excellence through its literary prizes, including the K & L Prize for Fiction, the Eugenia Abu/SEVHAGE International Prize for Creative Non-Fiction, and the E. E. Sule/SEVHAGE Prize for African Literary Criticism and much more!

In addition to publishing, SEVHAGE actively supports the literary community by organizing events such as the Benue Book and Arts Festival, which brings together writers, artists, and literary enthusiasts to celebrate African culture. SEVHAGE’s initiatives not only recognize literary achievement but also create opportunities for engagement and growth within the African literary space.

Winners will be announced, and certificates and prizes will be presented during the Benue Book and Arts Festival, scheduled for February 20th to 22nd, 2025, in Makurdi.

Congratulations to all the winners and runners-up on this remarkable win!