Celebrating 10 years of Niyi Osundare’s Nigerian National Order of Merit award
By Editor
ON December 4, 2014, 10 years ago, the renowned poet and celebrated public affairs commentator Professor Niyi Osundare was admitted to the Nigerian National Order of Merit (NNOM) award, the nation’s highest honour for distinguished creative and intellectual achievements.
To commemorate the event, the Trustees of the Niyi Osundare International Poetry Festival (NOIPOFEST), in collaboration with the Department of English, University of Ibadan, will hold a one-day programme of literary and cultural activities to celebrate the poet whose literary prowess continues to make Nigeria proud across the globe, a statement from Founder/Director of NOIPOFEST Dele Morakinyo said. It is noteworthy that 10 years after the historic national award, the world renowned ‘poet of the people’, as he is famously described, has continued to take his arts higher. Only recently, Osundare won laurels including Lifetime Achievements awards simultaneously across three continents, surprisingly in non-English speaking societies, where his poetry has broken the language barriers.
The event which has as theme ‘Niyi Osundare: 10 Years after the NNOM Award, the Harvest Continues’ will hold on December 11, 2024 at the English Department of the University of Ibadan. It will feature robust and inclusive activities such as poetry reading and spoken words performances, cultural displays and a panel discussion by eminent scholars who have followed the trajectory of Professor Osundare’s works over the years.
A special feature of the day will see Professor Osundare reading from his latest collection of poems which as usual speak to the reality of the debilitating situation in the Nigerian society. The event which will attract people from across the arts community, including students will have the respected broadcast management expert, diplomat and art patron, Ambassador Yemi Farounmbi as chairman.
The programme is open to the public.
