This time for Africa

Writers expressed concern over the hegemonic Western world and its dominance over African writing.

Taking part in a session at MBIFL on Thursday, African writers Futhi Ntshingila, Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor, Mshai Mwangola and Khadija Bajaber pointed out the challenges faced by African writers.

They spoke of instances when their writings were turned down by Western publishers citing that they did not fall in the ‘grand narrative’ category. But now, things were changing, they said.

Futhi Ntshingila saw the continent Africa as an ancient grandmother “who was complicated, disrupted and looted”.

She represented herself as the daughter of Africa. “There is something pristine with Africa that can never be touched,” she said.

Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor said that Africa was in a state of ‘trans- temporality’— an emotional and material engagement with intersecting pasts, presents and futures. But the hegemonic world has even preset meanings for the word ‘forward’ which is measured quantitatively and in their pretexts. The African writers unanimously admitted that they are in a fight to regain their lost identity.