The Hausa International Book and Arts Festival (HIBAF) returns for its 2025 edition in Abuja, Nigeria, from December 19–20. This year’s theme is “Knowledge Production(s).”
Founded and curated by Sada Malumfashi, the festival showcases contemporary African literature, poetry, music, art, film, and theatre in Hausa. First held in Kaduna in 2021, it has since become an annual event, with editions continuing through 2022, 2023, and 2024.
The 2025 festival will adopt a hybrid format, featuring both in-person and virtual events at Arewa House in Abuja. According to a press release, the theme “Knowledge Production(s)” will serve as a lens to examine the rich and layered epistemologies of the Hausa people. It will explore indigenous knowledge systems—shaped over centuries through oral traditions, communal wisdom, and spiritual practices—and how they reflect Hausa philosophy, governance, ethics, and relationships with the environment.
The release further notes: “The default model of knowledge production in neoliberal systems is often extractive, excluding many from the process and reinforcing existing power structures. While knowledge has become a key resource in late capitalism, the production of new knowledge has also been central to anti-capitalist movements. Thus, knowledge production exists both within and in opposition to neoliberal capitalism. This raises an urgent question: How can we resist the powerful forces shaping today’s knowledge economies?”
Some of the featured guests will be Sheikh Ahmed Gumi, Nabila Usman, Sals Fatiti, Salim Yunasa, Sumayya Ja’eh, Hidaaya Mahmoud, Faisal Tijjani, Majeed Bin Saleh, Dr Dikko Muhammed, Hassan Maina, Nathaniel Bivan, Shafa’atu Muhammad Balarabe, Faisal Ahmed Smith, Dr Umma Aliyu, Hassana Jego Magaji, Ochai Ogaba, Ummi Bakar, Richard Ali, Prof Ibrahim, Native Maqiri, Fu’ad Lawal, Ado Usman, Judith Caleb, Muhammad Fafa Bello, Nabila Usman, Prof Aliyu Muhammad Bunza, Hidaya Mahmoud, Salihu Mahe, Abdulbasit Adamu, and Abduljalal Musa Aliyu.
You can register to attend the festival by clicking here.
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