Kenyan writer Idza Luhumyo awarded Caine Prize for African Writing

At the ceremony which was held at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London on Monday, Luhumyo's story was praised as one that “represented a staggering feast."

"It was enchantment galore, a testament to the vibrancy, variety, and splendor of creative talent among writers of African descent," said Okey Ndibe who chaired the judge panel.

"It’s a credit to the judges’ dedication that we have a shortlist that runs the gamut stylistically and thematically,” Ndibe added.

'Five Years Next Sunday', a story published in the book Disruption, tales of a young woman who has been growing her locs for nearly five years, and has become known as a “woman caller”—one who calls the rain.

"An ostracized girl who ‘holds the fate of her community in her hair," as Ndibe defined it.

The 29-year-old was shortlisted among other writers including Joshua Chizoma (Nigeria) for “Collector of Memories,” Nana-Ama Danquah (Ghana) for “When a Man Loves a Woman,” Hannah Giorgis (Ethiopia) for “A Double-Edged Inheritance,” and Billie McTernan (Ghana) for “The Labadi Sunshine Bar.” 

The prize, which had 267 entries this year, is awarded for a short story by an African writer published in English. It is awarded yearly to a short story by a writer from Africa or the African diaspora.

Luhumyo now becomes the fifth Kenyan writer to win the Caine prize after Binyavanga Wainaina, who bagged the prize in 2002, Yvonne Owuor (2003), Okwiri Oduor (2014) and Makena Onjerika (2018). 

Apart from her story being published in the 2022 AKO Caine prize anthology, she will also be awarded a prize of Sh 1,417,484 (£10,000).

Other shortlisted candidates will also be awarded Sh 70,887 (£500) and also have their stories published in the 2022 AKO Caine prize anthology.

Luhumyo is a Kenyan short story writer, whose work explores Kenyan coastal identities. 

Her story “Five Years Next Sunday” was also the winner of the 2019/20 Short Story Day Africa Prize and was published in the Johannesburg Review of Books.