By Iminza Keboge
Published April 15, 2016
A television show to promote African literature is set to premiere on Africa Magic Family that is available on South Africa’s Dstv on April 16, 2016.
The programme, Africana Literati, shall be presented by Isabella Akinseye of Nigeria on Dstv channel 154 at 11:00 AM every Saturday.
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“Africana Literati is aimed at reviving the reading culture with a focus on celebrating our own stories and cultures,” says Akinseye who is also the brain behind the project.
Akinseye says she started her TV career reviewing books on a weekly segment, Bookaholic with Bella, on Silverbird television of Nigeria in 2009.
“I had given up my corporate communications job at Nestle Nigeria PLC to focus on my company, Yellow Tamarind Productions,” says Akinseye. “I am a graduate of Education with English and Drama from the University of Cambridge. I ran a blog called Bookaholic with award-winning essayist and writer, Temitayo Olofinlua, while we worked at leading publishing firm.”
A 13-episode series, Akinseye says each episode that runs for half an hour comprises profiles of leading African literary practitioners, African proverbs, and giveaways to nurture budding writing talent.
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“We have very few art shows out there,” says Akinseye. “Africana Literati is going to make reading and learning cool. Each episode shall have a culture critic reviewing a book, a vox pop and a ‘Back to School’ segment focusing on spelling, pronunciation and African slang.”
