A ground-breaking first

By Gamal Nkrumah
It should be a fundamental human right, say Rocha Chimerah and Kimani Njogu, the two Kenyan authors of the pioneering work Ufundishaji was Fasihi: Nadharia na Mbinu [The Teaching of Literature: Theory and Methods], for students in Africa to study literature, literary criticism and creative writing in their mother tongue.
The truth of this axiom came home to me forcefully at the 21st anniversary presentation of the Noma Award for Publishing in Africa. This is the first time that the award is being made in Egypt, or North Africa for that matter. The choice of venue, Egypt, was most appropriate because in Egypt, in sharp contrast to the rest of the continent, writing and publishing in the local language is de rigueur. In Africa, south of the Sahara, publishing in an indigenous African language is cause enough for celebration.
"The profuse flowering of literature in Kiswahili has not been matched by critical appreciation that covers the richness and scope, vigour and dynamism of creative writing in Kiswahili, the lingua franca of East Africa," Chimerah told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Moreover, the tools for critical reflection were isolated and uncoordinated. Our book was a response to a need that had existed for some time in the study of Kiswahili literature. The book is a journey in literary criticism and pedagogy."
"The book grew out of the recognition that most teachers approach literature as if it was comprehension. In the book we seek to make students more analytical and engaged in their reading. In every section we provide illustrations of actual classroom situations," explains Njogu, who describes the book, which took three years to complete, as "an exploration of literary theories and their value in the analysis of African literature." The authors deliberately chose to write their work in Kiswahili, the most prevalent African language in eastern Africa and the national language of both Kenya and Tanzania.
"In our view, the deliberate modernisation of Kiswahili and a number of other key African languages is crucial to the development of Africa on the social, economic, cultural and political levels. Africa cannot be an active participant in the creation of a better world without due recourse to their experiences," Njogu added.
"Within the more tolerant world we are advocating the right to languages, and the right of languages to contribute in improving the quality of lives of people, is crucial. The benefits that may accrue from our sensitivity to language and cultures in the pursuit of health, good governance, technology and education, cannot be underestimated."
Ngoju lamented the dearth of scholarly works in Africa's indigenous tongues. "The publishers, the Jomo Kenyatta Foundation, were very brave and risked publishing our work," he added.
The presentation of the 2000 Noma Award by Dr Ismail Serageddin to Dr Kimani Njogu and Prof Rocha Chimerah for their book Ufundishaji wa Fasihi: Nadharia na Mbinu, was organised on the fringes of, and in conduction with, the Cairo International Book Fair. "Two lessons can be learned from the success of the Cairo International Book Fair. One, that great achievements in the book industry can be realised if state and society recognise the pivotal role books play in the general development matrix, and two -- which is not always appreciated in Africa -- that it can be done based on a country's autonomous capacities; its economy, culture and specifically its language. It has been hugely satisfying to see millions of books published in Arabic on all subjects imaginable -- and from the bags of books that fair-goers were going out with -- at affordable prices," noted Walter Bgoya, a Tanzanian national and chairman of the Noma Award Managing Committee.
The jury described Ufundishaji wa Fasihi as "an important milestone in the evolution of literary criticism in Kiswahili, and an invaluable contribution to the understanding and teaching of Kiswahili literature." The jury also pointed out that no other "work of similar scope and depth on the application of literary and pedagogic theories" exists to aid students of Kiswahili literature. Unlike most educated Africans, and it makes precious little difference whether they were educated in the continent or overseas, the authors do not feel more comfortable tackling theoretical and academic subjects in their native tongue. The vast majority of African intellectuals and academics use the language of the former colonial powers, be it English, French or Portuguese, as the medium for communicating complex ideas. What until very recently has been derogatorily referred to as the vernacular, or indigenous languages, were traditionally judged incapable of transmitting, let alone analysing, literary and pedagogic theories.
"In most of Africa, indigenous languages are not deliberately developed or modernised. They are at the margins of national activities. Yet these are the languages that are spoken by most people. The emancipation and democratisation of Africa cannot be restricted to those of us who have access to European languages. The development of reading materials in languages understood by the bulk of the people is a first step in that direction," insists Njogu. Active in radio theatre in Kenya, he says that he applies the same principles and techniques when writing and producing soap operas and comic strips in Kiswahili. He has used this method extensively to promote public awareness of various social, health and environmental concerns.
Njogu also touched upon the thorny subject of the function and impact of pedagogy on social formation, and especially the interaction between schools and universities and other social institutions. "A substantial part of our book is devoted to how literature may be effectively taught in the classroom. The involvement of students in the generation of knowledge is of paramount importance. Literature should contribute in image formation by broadening the critical faculties of students. This is a pedagogical responsibility," Njogu asserted.
Bgoya concurred. A retired diplomat and now publisher, Bgoya spoke of the cultural and historic ties that bind Egypt to East Africa. Long before the BBC, Voice of America or Radio Moscow introduced Kiswahili programmes, Radio Cairo was broadcasting in the most widely spoken language in Africa south of the Sahara. "In the late 50s, Radio Cairo's Kiswahili news and commentary programmes were followed religiously." In the 1890s, he continues, the sultans of Zanzibar imported an Egyptian orchestra and introduced tarab as an essential feature of court music, which soon filtered down to the commoners. Indeed, the Egyptian Musical Club, founded in the 1930s, "is still going strong," he assured.
Kiswahili itself is a hybrid language, a rich amalgam of Arabic loan words juxtaposed on a Bantu substratum, grammar and syntax. "The use of Kiswahili was a determining factor in their winning the award," Bgoya told the Weekly.
The prestigious $10,000 Noma Award, the brainchild of Shoichi Noma, former head of Kodansha, a leading Japanese publishing house, aims at encouraging African publishers to be "bold and innovative." Noma created an endowment in 1979 which awards African writers for excellence in academic and scholarly writing, creative writing and children's literature. His daughter Savako Noma now oversees the fund. Works in any language -- African, Asian or European -- are eligible for the award, one of the most highly acclaimed in African literary circles. The winners were understandably proud because their work won in spite of stiff competition -- 100 titles, from 50 publishers, in 16 countries and nine languages were submitted.
Recommend this page
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
Send a letter to the Editor