Return of the Kampala Literature Festival

_____________

Last year, the first-ever literature festival in Uganda took place at the Onomo Hotel in Nakasero. Attended by about 300 people over three days, the Kampala Writes Literature Festival sought to showcase and celebrate writers and creatives in Uganda.

Being the first of what hopefully will be an annual event, it had its challenges. But on the whole, it was a success, according to the curator, author Goretti Kyomuhendo.

“Last year's festival was a resounding success in terms of the great turn up of attendees and the enthusiasm with which the festival was received,” Kyomuhendo said. “We learnt many lessons from it, but first and foremost is that there's a gap for a consistent literary festival to foster the growth and development of Uganda's book sector.”

Leading up to last year’s festival, there were realistic worries whether people would turn up in numbers. That Ugandans don’t read, or write, has been a recurring criticism, with some agreeing that there is truth in it. But the organisers needn’t have worried, because people showed up in droves for all the three days of the festival. So much that even extra chairs brought in were not sufficient, and by the last afternoon, it was almost standing room only.

And so here we are, ready for the second edition.

“The festival will bring together writers from Africa and its diaspora, as well as publishers, academics, booksellers, artists, cultural practitioners and other book enthusiasts,” Kyomuhendo, who returns as the curator, said. “We aim to deliver a well-rounded, immersive festival with an array of exciting activities tailored to cater for diverse audiences and interests.”

Last year’s event, being a first, featured mainly home-grown writers and publishers. But this is planned to be a bigger edition, with international participation, a wide range of activities and panel discussions.

The highlight of the festival will no doubt be the keynote address on Friday by the UK-based award-winning Ugandan writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi. She is arguably the country’s most celebrated writer of her generation.

Jennifer Makumbi Nsubuga will give the keynote address at the 2nd edition of the Kampala Writes Literature Festival to be held at Makerere this weekend. (COURTESY PHOTO)

With the theme Belonging, the festival will explore what it means to find ‘home’ in new places through words, according to Kyomuhendo. It will examine the unique power of stories to connect people to places, and delve into what it means and takes to belong to a culture, a community, an idea, in today’s rapidly changing world.

The festival will feature panel discussions on influences shaping the production and consumption of literature; intimate Writers-in-Conversation sessions followed by interactive engagements with the audience; hands-on and genre-specific masterclasses and workshops. It will also have book launches and signings by local and international writers.

There will also be a mini-book fair for publishers, booksellers and independent authors; film screenings, spoken word performances and a tribute to the late Kenyan writer Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o.

Organised by the Goethe-Zentrum Kampala/Uganda German Cultural Society, in conjunction with the British Council, the Kampala Writes Literature Festival starts on Friday morning and will end on Sunday evening. It will take place at the Yusuf Lule Auditorium, Makerere University.