The 8th Hargeysa International Book Fair is coming

The eighth running of Somaliland’s premier literary shindig, the Hargeysa International Book Fair, will be happening from 1^st – 6^th August at the Gualid Hotel. It promises to be very cool.

The number of people flying in from all over the world to visit what some have described as the safest city in the region is epic. Looking through the program one can see that this one will be a very memorable one with authors, politicians, musicians, poets, and many more converging. The theme of this year’s events is “spaces.”

There will be speeches by the Somaliland Minister of Information, National Guidance and Culture Edna Adan Ismail, Amina Mahamud Jirde the first lady of Somaliland, and renowned Ghanaian architect Joe Addo.

Exhibitions will also be on the table with Alison Barkerville, Samira Al Baroud, Kate Holt,

Kate Stanworth, Bahja M Duale, and Nagib Arab Ibrahim all show off their photographs, paintings, and drawings. There will be plays too. The number of different activities can only be described as mind-boggling.

Here at JamesMurua.com, our focus is on African literature and authors and there will be plenty of those there. The country of focus of the festival this year is Nigeria and therefore you can expect to see some authors from the continent’s most populous country. They include Prof Osundaro Niyi Osundare, Chuma Nwokolo, Okey Ndibe, and more.

There will also be writers like Hannah Pool the British–Eritrean writer of My Fathers’ Daughter, Ciku Kimeria who wrote Of Goats and Poisoned Oranges, and South African writer and scholar Jonny Steinberg.

This being Somaliland’s festival then you can expect many from that country. You will meet with Nadifa Mohamed (Black Mamba Boy and The Orchid Of Lost Souls (my review)), Faarax Cali “Gamuute”, Rashiid Sh Cabdillaahi “Gadhwayne”, Said Jama Hussein, the highly-esteemed playwright Said Salah Ahmed, writer Rashid Mahamed Shabelleh, renowned Islamic scholar and seasoned journalist Shiekh Mahamoud H Dalmar, and celebrated young novelists and journalists humanitarian worker, and activisst Hibo Jamal and Quman Akli, photographer Samira Al Baroud, writers Sayid-Ahmed M Yuusuf, Abdalle Haji, Cabdillahi Cawed Cige, Idris Yousouf Elmi, Abdikarim Ahmed, Maxamed Xirsi Guuleed, film-maker Abdirahman Cadani, musician Da’ud Ali Masahaf.

So if you can, I recommend that you make your way to Hargeysa and check out how this one turns out. If you can’t we shall keep you abreast of the ongoings in Somaliland.