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The Caine Prize for African Writing is awarded annually to an African writer of a short story published in English. Ahead of the announcement of this year’s winner, we’ve invited each of the 5 shortlisted authors to share their work, insights into their writing processes and their global perspectives on what it means to be an African writer in 2016.

Tope Folarin won the Caine Prize for African Writing in 2013 and has been nominated for a second time for his story, ‘Genesis.’ In a new essay for The Cultural Frontline, he addresses how his obsession with creation stories prompted him to write a creation story of his own.

Somali-born Abdul Adan grew up in Kenya and has lived in America, the setting of his entry ‘The Lifebloom Gift.’ He takes us on a journey into the world of his story, where touching, not seeing, is believing. Lesley Nneka Arimah, a Nigerian writer living in Minneapolis, USA, talks to Tina about the imaginative and intellectual leap that led her to set ‘What it Means When a Man Falls From the Sky’ in the distant, dystopian future of ‘what was now the United Countries but had once been Africa.’ Bongani Kona, author of ‘At Your Requiem’ and Lidudumalingani, author of ‘Memories We Lost’ discuss common themes, shared experiences and the significance of deciding to write in English.
Presented by Tina Daheley.

(Photo: Tope Folarin, 2016 Caine Prize shortlisted author and 2013 Caine Prize winner. Credit: Tope Folarin)