Abdulrahman “Abu Amirah” Ndegwa, a Mombasa-based writer, publisher and founding editor of Hekaya Arts Initiative, an online platform that publishes stories from The Swahili Coast, was the inaugural winner of the AWT’s 2018 Seed Fund for Emerging Publishers worth EURO 4,200. The aim of the fund is to facilitate the winner to produce a model publication that adheres to international publishing standards. Abu Amirah used the money to publish KasKazi a travelling fiction narrative written by over 15 writers from different locations of the Swahili Coast.
KasKazi was published in 2019 and launched in Kampala during the second edition of the AWT Publishing Fellowship Programme in March 2020.
Caption: Abu Amirah (KasKazi author) and Botho Lejowa, author of Meetings With Death (Botswana)
KasKazi will be translated into German by Hans Hofele, founder of the Germany-based cultureafrica.net, which publishes in English and German. The online blog celebrates all aspects of cultural life in Africa with a focus on literature media.
Abu Amirah commented on the news, `During the 2018 AWT Publishing Training Workshop, held in Entebbe, Uganda, Ellah Wakatama, the lead trainer talked a lot about the lifecycle of a book, how we should not see the first print as a book’s last breath. Translations play an important role in enhancing this life cycle. A book gets the chance to live another life in a different space and find new friends, new lovers and even adversaries.
Hans has offered this to KasKazi, a massive chance for the book, for Abdi and Mumtaz to interact with the German space in ways we had not dared imagine.
Heroe Book Fair, organised by Lorna Likiza in Mombasa made this happen. This where I first met Hans Holefe. I am glad Hans got to do this because he is a dear friend whom I have complete confidence in to handle the translation of the book and its dynamics. Perhaps this fits in Hans’ and Culture Afrique’s grand ambition to have more African stories translated into German and to escalate art and cultural exchange between various literary spaces.’’
Congratulations Abu Amirah!
Copies of KasKazi are available at African Writers Trust at UGX 40,000. Reach out to Mark, AWT Administrator on +256 753 033086 (WhatsApp) / +256 775 685909.
OR Send an inquiry to Hekaya Arts Initiative on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
OR
Visit Hekays`s website.
