The Nigerian artist Vincent Kolo has been awarded the $50,000 Nefertiti Grand Prize for Creativity on the inaugural Africa Integration Day, for his art work The Cords of Yesterday. Former president Olusegun Obasanjo, appearing in a virtual ceremony marking the end of the Boma of Africa Festival, presented Kolo the cash prize.
“The grand prize was awarded for work that passionately highlights the contemporary quest for Africa to learn from its past, take charge of its present and build its own unique vision of a united, prosperous, future,” a statement from the organizers read.
The Kenyan writer Peter Wambua won the $5,000 Prize for Literary Excellence, the Malawian artist Bertha Munthali received the $10,000 prize for African Renaissance, and the Swazi photographer Sinenkosi Msomi was awarded the $15,000 Prize for Social Justice.
The Boma of Africa Festival is organized by the AU Commission and the AfroChampions Initiative, with the Grand Prize sponsored by Afreximbank and Commercial International Bank.
