Haliru Ali Musa has emerged as the winner of the inaugural Alexander Nderitu Prize for World Literature. The revelation was made on 4 April 2025 via The African Griot Review, an avant-garde arts magazine edited by the founder of the prestigious new prize. Haliru’s beautifully structured and stylishly told story, The Pregnant Ghost, beat out 71 other entries. The young Nigerian makes a grand entry into the world of letters, given that he will receive a Kshs 100,000 (USD 770.00) cash prize, a one-year-long online marketing campaign and have the option of agent representation by an Asian literary agency. The winning story has been published by The African Griot Review (Kenya) and will also appear in The Asian Journal of Literature (Sri Lanka) later in the year.

Themed on ‘Peace’, the short story contest received entries from Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia, The Kingdom of Eswatini, South Sudan, Zimbabwe, Poland, Malawi, The Gambia, Sri Lanka, USA, Botswana and Tanzania…

Haliru Ali Musa is an engineer with a passion for storytelling. Though he hails from Katsina, Nigeria, he now calls the bustling city of Lagos his home. He was recently honored with a nomination to participate in the esteemed NAL (National Academy of Letters) creative writing capacity workshop, where he had the privilege of being mentored by the illustrious author Obinna Udenwe.

By Rohana Kaluarachchi