pius adesanmi 2

Photo Credit: June Payne, Institute of African Studies, Carleton University.

Professor Pius Adesanmi, was a Nigerian-born, Canada-based scholar who passed away tragically in the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash on March 10, 2019. His passing has been a monumental loss to the global African Studies community. It is in his honour that the African Studies Association of Africa (ASAA) has established the Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award for Excellence in African Writing.

The award will honour an outstanding single-authored book focused on Africa and/or the global African world biennially. Nominations for this prize should be submitted by or on behalf of a scholar, activist, and/or artist. The award committee will consider books that cover any historical period and come from any discipline or combination of disciplines, published in English, French, Portuguese, or an African language. The award committee is particularly interested in books that are theoretically, conceptually, and/or methodologically innovative and demonstrate excellence in African writing.

The winner of the Pius Adesanmi Memorial Award for Excellence in African Writing will receive a cash prize and a plaque in recognition of his/her achievement. S/he will also receive lifetime membership of the ASAA. Funding for the prize is made possible by the ASAA.

Eligibility
Submitted works must meet the following criteria:

  1. Be a single-authored book focused on Africa and/or the global African experience. Edited volumes will not be considered.
  2. Be published in English, French, Portuguese, or any African language.
  3. Have a copyright date of no more than four years prior to the year of the award. Books published between 2015 and 2019 will be eligible for the inaugural 2019 award.

Submission Criteria

  1. Entries will open on MAY 9, 2019 and must be received by JULY 15, 2019 to be eligible for the 2019 award. Nominations should be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  2. Submissions may be made by the publishers or authors of nominated books.
  3. Nominations for the award must include a short description of the book, its theoretical, conceptual, and/or methodological significance, and what makes it an example of excellence in African writing.
  4. Nominations must be accompanied by six physical or electronic copies of the book for review by each member of the award committee. Physical copies of submitted books will not be returned.
  5. Please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. after MAY 9, 2019 for details of the mailing address for physical books.

Announcement of Winner

The winner will be announced and recognized at a special ceremony during the closing banquet of the ASAA Biennial Conference in October 2019 in Nairobi, Kenya. The announcement will subsequently be posted on the ASAA website.