The Afrika-Writes Poetry Workshop shall be a four-day poetry writing workshop is set to begin on October 4th to end with a public event on 08 October 2019 at Steam Lounge, Old GRA, Makurdi. The workshop is planned in such a way that:

-Two days would for fifteen secondary school students (eight female and seven male) from different schools in Makurdi,

-And another two days for ten adults (five females and five males) from any part of the country.

How To Participate

Secondary School students were selected based on their participation in SEVHAGE/ANGYA Poetry Prize. Basically entrants who made the shortlist and those who eventually won the prize in their category.

For the adult category, an individual is required to send three samples of his or her poems to okoowiocho@gmail.com, in order to be selected.

The workshop shall take two approaches

-Understanding poetry and the styles of different poets,

-Practice of the craft.

The need for this is to introduce the participants to different voices and techniques which would broaden their horizon on the structures and techniques involved in writing poetry.

The idea of themes in poetry shall also be discussed during the workshop, as participants will be encouraged to pick images from their culture and transform it into issues that relate to their cultural background. This is aimed at repositioning their minds in such a way that their writings are influenced by their culture in such a way that their cultural heritage is preserved.

According to Oko Owi Ocho, “The pivotal aim of this workshop is to create 25 distinct voices in poetry from Benue state, and Nigeria at large. There will also be a promotion of reading, as books will be served out to the participants, most especially, books of contemporary poetry.”

He added that “After the workshop, there will be continual contact with the participants in order to ensure commitment.” The follow-up will feature monthly supervisions which will enable participants to share their progress reports and seek further help.”