Rentrée Littéraire du Mali 2024 prizes awarded.

Prizes were handed out at the closing ceremony of Rentrée Littéraire du Mali 2024 in Bamako, Mali on Saturday, February 24, 2024.

Rentrée Littéraire du Mali (Literary Return of Mali) is a festival of books, words, and ideas hosted annually in Bamako, Mali. Since 2008, the festival has invited writers, academics, researchers, and artists from five continents and the public to question our imaginations and their territories for peaceful living and a sustainable world.

The 2024 theme was “L’Afrique du vivre-ensemble” (English: The Africa of living together) and Bamako residents were treated to readings of both poetry and prose, literary cafes, workshops, panels, tributes, keynote addresses, and loads more. Some of the leading names in African letters working today, a full list here, dazzled audiences with their intelligence, wit, and candour.

The festival ended with a closing ceremony with literary prizes handed out to writers this time in Bamako. The following were the winners on the Saturday.

Prix Ahmed Baba 2024 (3 million CFA)

Prix Ahmed Baba 2024 (3 million CFA)

Awarded to an African author, regardless of their country of residence, for a novel written in French and published no more than two years ago, in a publishing house including one of addresses at least located in an African country.

• Les Papillons de Lampedusa, Walid Amri (Tunisia), Editions Demeter and L’Harmattan (2023)

Prix Massa Makan Diabaté (2 million CFA)

This prize rewards a novel, a collection of short stories, a story, or a play theatre.

• Le silence des papillons, Zeina Haidara (Mali), Edition Gafé, 2023

Prix Union européenne premier roman (1 million CFA)

Literary prize awarded to a work published on January 1, 2022, and January 15, 2024. This prize rewards a first work of fiction.

• Hodarè, Ousman Toure (Mali), Éditions Timbouctou, 2023  

Prix Moussa Sow (1 million FCFA)

international Essay Prize for researchers/academics.

• Afrique du Sud. Histoire et littérature, Benaouda Lebdai (Algeria), Éditions Casbah 2023 and L’Harmattan Guinée.

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