Modupe Kuti Wins 2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature Flash Fiction

By Uche Peter

Budding Nigerian writer, Modupe Ojuolape Kuti is the winner in the Flash Fiction category of the 2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature. The category is part of the Etisalat Prize for literature, a platform to recognize and encourage unpublished writers across the Continent.

Kuti emerged as the winner for her short story ‘Gone’, at the awards ceremony for the 2015 Etisalat Prize for Literature held at the Intercontinental Lagos Hotel recently. Her entry was one of over 1,000 entries from which 50 met the judging criteria and were shortlisted for the voting process. She was rewarded with £1,000 cash prize and an iPhone 6. Two other Nigerians, John Chidi and Jacqueline Uche Agweh came second and third for their stories, “Invincible” and “Madness in Degrees”; they were also rewarded with £500 each and a high end device.

Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat Nigeria, Matthew Willsher, said the Flash fiction category was created to meet the needs of the fast paced world, therein providing a glimpse into the creative minds of unpublished writers.

“We are delighted again to celebrate the richness and strength of African literature. The Etisalat Prize for Literature embodies this year’s theme, ‘Representing the Diversity of African Voices’. Diversity has always been a huge source of innovation. Africa's cultural diversity is increasingly recognized as a central part of the African collective identity” he said.

The star prize for the 2015 edition of the Etisalat Prize for Literature was won by Democratic Republic of Congo’s Fiston Mwanza Mujila for his book, Tram 83, a book originally written in French, and translated into English by Roland Glasser.

He received a £15,000 cheque, an engraved Montblanc Meisterstück and an Iphone 6s. He will also attend the Etisalat Fellowship, worth £13,000, at the prestigious University of East Anglia, United Kingdom, under the mentorship of Professor Giles Foden.