MINISTER for Education, Science, and Technology Prof. Adolf Mkenda has highlighted potential of the Mwalimu Nyerere National Award for Creative Writing in addressing shortage of books, fostering a culture of reading and stimulating Tanzania’s book market.

Speaking at the launch event for distribution of award-winning books in Dar es Salaam yesterday, Prof. Mkenda emphasised that the initiative is a strategic effort to encourage creative writing and reduce reliance on the limited number of books currently available in the country.

“The Mwalimu Nyerere National Award provides a valuable opportunity to expand selection of books available for use in schools,” he said.

“Through this award, we aim to encourage more writers; the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE) should create a framework to reach out to writers across the country. The government will ensure that award-winning books are purchased and distributed to schools, helping to promote Kiswahili both locally and internationally.”

Prof. Mkenda also addressed long-standing challenges in the Tanzanian book industry, including declining markets and the limited availability of quality reading materials.

“There was a risk that publishing companies could shut down. To address this, the government has decided to stimulate the book market by allocating funds to purchase books. This ensures that publishers have a reason to continue producing quality materials without fearing market instability,” he said.

He described the award as a collective effort by various stakeholders to revitalise the publishing industry and urged that the initiative be viewed as a joint endeavour rather than the work of any one individual.

“This is not the idea of one person but the result of contributions from many stakeholders,” he said.

Dr Aneth Komba, TIE Director General, announced that three books have been launched as part of the initiative: Death Prison (Novel), Mtale wa Ngariba (Poem) and Hadithi ni Zawadi (Children’s book). Two of the books won the award in 2023 while the third was recognised this year.

The winners received their prizes which include 10m/-, trophies and certificates. The final step was publication and distribution of the books which required time for approval and production.

“The books are now ready for use in schools across the country,” Dr Komba said.

She added that a total of 140,000 copies of each book have been printed with government funding amounting to 400m/-.

The Mwalimu Nyerere National Award for Creative Writing, overseen by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology was initiated in 2023 to honour outstanding authors contributing to Kiswahili creative writing.