Nairobi is about to become the capital of world literature this coming weekend! From 19–21 September 2025, the Macondo Literary Festival makes its much-anticipated return for its fifth stellar edition, bringing writers, readers, and dreamers together at the Kenya Cultural Centre. This year’s theme—“Chronicles & Currents”—is as evocative as it is timely, casting a wide net across the Atlantic to explore the literary, historical, and cultural connections binding Africa, South America, and the Caribbean, regions deeply intertwined by histories of migration, resistance, and cultural resilience.
Books are usually consumed privately, but Macondo Lit Fest opens that experience into a shared space, allowing literature to breathe beyond the page. Meeting the authors behind the words creates intimacy and immediacy for readers, while they get to exchange their own interpretations in real time. Festival authors can explain the thinking, research, or emotion behind their work, and audiences can question, challenge, and respond. It transforms reading from a solitary act into a public dialogue.
Macondo Literary Festival will comprise three days of lively panels, intimate baraza sessions, masterclasses, scheduled sessions for authors meeting their readers, children’s activities, a special focus on Kenyan literature, and poetry happenings that, intriguingly, include a typewriter. The Festival is programmed to be a captivating, immersive experience that’s equal parts local and global. Whether you’re a die-hard bookworm, a curious creative, or simply looking to be inspired, Macondo promises an atmosphere where ideas flow as freely as conversations over coffee.
Speaking of coffee – don’t worry, there will be opportunity to onja onja your way through the flavors of Nairobi between panels and poetry, sampling from vendors Fonda’s Taqueria – for bold Mexican flavours, Revolutionary Coffee, Arlapops – who serve refreshing paletas, and Big Dayum Heroes, with homegrown Swahili favourites.
Macondo has released a list of visiting authors and we can see that they will be welcoming some of the most exciting voices in contemporary literature, including Itamar Vieira Junior (Brazil), Cristina Bendek (Colombia), Marcia Douglas (Jamaica), Kevin Jared Hosein (Trinidad & Tobago), Karen Lord (Barbados), Yewande Omotoso (Nigeria/South Africa), Priya Hein (Mauritius), Joaquim Arena (Cape Verde), Yamen Manai (Tunisia) and UK literary star Daniel Hahn—alongside a strong Kenyan contingent.
Yewande Omotoso (Nigeria/South Africa)
At the core of Macondo is the desire to bring together authors and audiences for robust thought and debate. Each session (usually an hour) will have at least 20 minutes earmarked for engagement with the audience, because the curators have created a festival where the Macondo citizens, their community, are as important as those on the panels. They are encouraged to not only ask questions, but challenge, debate, create, dream. In fact the engagement is so dynamic that at past festivals it has been common for the Q&A to last beyond it’s allocated 20 minutes.
Audiences will experience panel discussions such as “Mawimbi” (“Waves“ in Swahili), a blend of artistic conversations on literature in sound, interactive performance, spoken word, music and movement. Gently steered by Slim Shaka, Kenyan renowned artists Ach13ng’, Nile Dawta and Nekoye Ommeh will peel the layers of identity, love, resistance and rebirth as a fluid, soulful and unending tide.
Kevin Jared Hosein (Trinidad + Tobago)
At the panel discussion “World-Makers, Future-Crafters, Story-Shapers”, hosted by Alex Wanjala, Stoneface Bombaa, Keith Ang’ana, Soreti, and Chao Tayiana will look at how a new generation rises, defying the old-world architectures of betrayal and injustice that have pushed our world to the brink. The bearers of a restless hope choose to burn illusions rather than inherit a fractured earth or remain silent about human excesses alongside their elders. They will explore what meaning both literature and story hold for those raised in the age of social media, meme warfare, and trans-boundary digital solidarities. This session is a discussion and exploration of the philosophy and feeling of a youthful revolutionary imagination that is already breathing new life into the unknown world-to-come.
How often do you get to interact with political cartoonists? Two of Africa’s most prolific and globally influential political commentators discuss humour as a genre, how graphic novels and editorial cartoons speak to the world at “Drawing the line: Laughing at the scavengers”. Few art forms cut as sharply—or as swiftly—as political cartoons. In a single frame, they provide a clear lens into society’s challenges. From East Africa, Godfrey “Gado” Mwampembwa’s fearless pen has tackled authoritarianism, broken taboos, and brought much-needed levity; in Southern Africa, Jonathan Shapiro — “Zapiro”— has used his biting wit to become both celebrated and delightfully controversial. This session will be hosted by the young visual artist Naddya Adhiambo Oluoch-Olunya.
Cartoon by GADO – courtesy of the artist
You can also look forward to the discussion: “Blackness, African-ness and the politics of color” Dino Martins, Cristina Bendek, Yamen Manai, Yewande Omotoso are hosted by academic, artist and activist, Mshai Mwangola to debate how pigmentation has been mythologized, commodified, weaponized. How does it shape desire, belonging and power? What does it mean to write from a body that the world has decided to read and rank at a glance?
On Sunday evening, wrapping up Macondo 5.0 audiences will be treated to a concert by Kato Change, one of the premiere jazz guitarists in Kenya. His self-directed style draws from a heritage of African music as well as Blues and Jazz – and years of playing with musicians of Brazil. Take Kato Change’s vibes into the Mugumo Courtyard, where Macondo’s first music curator Kiuri Mburathi is waiting for you with more tunes that will make your body move and your heart full.
Kato Change – courtesy of the artist
These are just a few highlights. Beyond the main stage, the festival keeps things buzzing and interactive:
- Kenya Writes – a dedicated space that shines a spotlight on Kenyan writers and the ever-evolving landscape of local literature. Through panels that range from publishing and comics to youth collectives and short fiction, the tent brings together established and emerging voices to reflect on the stories Kenyans are telling today and shaping Kenya’s literary future.
- Poetry Hotspot – an interactive space where audiences can play with words, create collaborative poems, and celebrate verse in unexpected ways.
- Kids’ Corner – created to spark a love for literature early through storytelling, creative workshops, and games.
- Macondo Baraza – Rooted in the tradition of communal gatherings across Africa, it merges literature with conversations on Kiswahili, history, and identity, creating a space where writers, thinkers, artists, and audiences meet in dialogue. The Baraza is open, participatory, and dynamic—inviting diverse voices to question, share, and challenge one another.
- Masterclasses Designed for both emerging and established writers, the classes combine practical exercises, group dialogue, and personal reflection. Spaces are limited to maintain depth and connection. Come ready to write. Come ready to rethink. Come ready to remember. These must be signed up for in advance.
- A renewed focus on Global Africa, amplifying voices that challenge colonial narratives and celebrate diasporic connections.
Dr. Mshai Mwangola at Macondo LitFest 2024 (photo by author)
The Macondo Literary Festival is not just about books. It’s an intellectual inquiry guided by the parameters of literature, exploring topics that are deeply meaningful on a societal and global level.
Chronicles & Currents speaks to the flow of stories across borders and generations,” says the Macondo team. “This year, we ask: What is carried in the stories we inherit? What is erased, what resurfaces—and how can literature act as both a ritual of remembrance and a compass for the future?”
As Macondo turns five, its vision is clearer than ever: to build a literary home that transcends borders, challenges colonial narratives, and celebrates the vast, interconnected tapestry of Global Africa.
Rooted in Nairobi yet reaching across oceans, Macondo has become one of the city’s most exciting cultural events, an inclusive and deeply human celebration of words and worlds. This September, join the currents and immerse yourself in the chronicles of the continent and the diaspora at the Macondo Literary Festival.
Macondo Literary Festival takes place across multiple stages at the Kenya Cultural Centre (Kenya National Theatre). The full programme with detailed listings of events can be found at www.macondolitfest.org and you can buy your tickets – at very reasonable prices – on Kenya Buzz.
Follow @macondolitfest on Instagram for their latest updates and highlights of the festival.
