The Gambia is one of only five recipient
countries on the continent to host a new African Poetry Library donated by the
African Poetry Book Fund, a foundation to promote poetry in Africa, based at
the University of Nebraska in the USA.
The African Poetry Library – a Reading
Library in The Gambia is thanks to the efforts of the African Poetry Book Fund
(APBF), Prairie Schooner, (the
University of Nebraska-Lincoln's literary journal), and University of
Nebraska-Lincoln's (UNL) Libraries in conjunction with individuals
and organisations in The Gambia, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya and Uganda.
The African Poetry Library Initiative is a
collaborative venture to establish accessible and user friendly small
poetry libraries on the African continent to support aspiring and established
poets giving them access to contemporary poetry in books and journals, and
serving as a resource for poets interested in publication in Africa and around
the world. Each library received
300 books, journals and magazines during the summer of 2014 and will receive a
further 300 books journals and magazines in 2015 and again in 2016.
The National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) have
partnered on this prestigious project and are hosting the library at the
Centre’s Office in Fajara, behind GT Bank. The caretaker organisations of the
library are the African Homecomers Collective and SABLE LitMag who
have negotiated the discussion with the AFPB to install and receive the Reading
library which will be run by their volunteers.
Poet Kadija Sesay,
a Sierra Leonean who founded Sable Litmag said: “We would love people to come
to the library and share ideas and suggestions to make the poetry library
vibrant, so it can be used by the nation to help us bring more poetry to
Gambian people, whether it is read in a book or performed on stage. We also
want to develop and train young poets for tomorrow, to write and publish books
and win international awards – it is all possible!”
There are plans
in the short term to ensure that all published Gambian poets have their books
in the library.
Mr Hassoum
Ceesay, NCAC, said: ‘The Poetry Library will build reading and writing skills
of Gambians, and will also animate the NCAC offices at Fajara. This is indeed a
wonderful development.”
The founder of
the African poetry book fund, Professor Kwame Dawes, an award winning Ghanaian/
Jamaican poet said,
“Frankly, I believe
every city should have its own poetry library. The African Poetry Book
Fund editors, having had a chance to read over a thousand manuscripts by
African poets in our contest and through our submission system, agreed that one
of the great needs that was apparent in the work we saw was access to
contemporary poetry from around the world and from Africa.”
The key was finding
partners in the different countries, partners willing to ‘own’ these libraries
and do all the work on the ground to make the libraries work for the community.
Our task was to supply the libraries with the books and with logistical
support and library consultation support.
We expect to see these
resource centres for poets as lively and engaging places for poets to be
challenged and to strengthen their craft through what they read and what they
learn in dialogue with other poets. “
A three-year
plan is currently being devised by AHC and Sable LitMag to include children’s
poetry section as well as workshops and readings for youth and adults. A school
outreach programme is being devised by the K.A.I Youth Movement.
African
Poetry Library, Gambia
NCAC Fajara Office, Kanifing, The Gambia
Location: off Kairaba Avenue, behind GT Bank
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