Four Nigerian writers – Damilare Kuku, Fatima Bala, Eloghosa Osunde and Peter Okonkwo – have been nominated in the Literature category of the 20th edition of The Future Awards Africa (TFAA). The milestone edition, themed “Celebrating the Redefiners: Africa’s AI Generation,” recognizes young Africans making notable contributions across 26 categories, spanning literature, technology, entrepreneurship, music, film and sports. The awards ceremony is expected to take place in November at the Balmoral Events Centre in Lagos. Established in 2006 by Chude Jideonwo and Adebola Williams, the awards celebrate Africans aged 18 to 35 whose work demonstrates excellence, innovation and impact.
The nominees bring different literary achievements to the shortlist. Kuku is the bestselling author of Nearly All the Men in Lagos Are Mad and Only Big Bumbum Matters Tomorrow. Bala, whose books include Broken: Not a Halal Love Story and Hafsatu Bebi, recently released her story collection The Lies We Tell. Osunde, the author of Vagabonds!, is known for work that crosses literary forms and genres, while poet Peter Okonkwo founded P. English Literature and has published several poetry collections, including Escape from the Unseen Dungeons: A Cry for Mercy. Their nominations place contemporary Nigerian fiction and poetry among the creative fields being recognised in this anniversary edition.
The Literature category has also drawn attention following writer Somto Ihezue’s statement that he was nominated but chose to decline. In an X post, Ihezue said he had learned only afterwards that the awards hoped to celebrate writers using AI in their storytelling, adding that he had contacted the organisers to request the removal of his name, photograph and biography. His name does not appear on the published list of nominees, and the report has not independently verified the details of his account. The Future Awards Africa had not publicly commented on the matter at the time of the original report. The winners are expected to be announced at the November ceremony, where the Literature category will bring attention to four writers working across fiction, poetry and contemporary storytelling.
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