Newly elected Malawi Writers Union of Malawi (Mawu) President Shadreck Chikoti said on Sunday that the union and writers in the country have a long way to go to perfect their art.
Chikoti, who has succeeded Chikumbutso Ndaferankhande, admitted that over the past two decades, the union had not made significant strides in literature either nationally or internationally.
“My utmost desire is to see our writers honing their craft to the point where the universe, not just Malawi, becomes our platform,” the award-winning writer said.
He said to achieve this, there was a need to revive workshops, establish a festival that everyone could support and create residencies.
“We must expose our writers to international platforms.
“Our union must be vibrant, in touch with new media, technology and the digital universe,” Chikoti said.
The Mawu leader said the country had talented writers.
“Talent is not our limitation. What we lack is an environment that nurtures and supports that talent,” the author of Azotus the Kingdom said.
Chikoti, who is also the founder and director of Story Club FM, went unopposed during elections, which were held in Lilongwe on Saturday.
This was after challenger Chifundo Mkwanda decided to pull out at the 11th hour.
Ndaferankhande, who did not seek re-election, said recently that Mawu would always be close to his heart.
“I cherish my reign; it has been a learning curve holding such a strategic position,” he said.
Ndaferankhande said the challenge with his committee during his tenure was that they took over during the Covid period, when donors had frozen aid.
“We had no office but despite all this, throughout, we have maintained the Blantyre secretariat. We won a Copyright Society of Malawi (Cosoma) grant and we have trained writers in Chiradzulu and Karonga,” he said.
He also said that they were happy that three books, namely Azotus Kingdom, Akuzike and the Gods and Pilgrims Together had entered the school curriculum.
“This is no mean feat. Our regret is failure to hold more workshops and failure to bring back the FCB Short Story contest,” Ndaferankhande said.
Foster Benjamin is the vice president, having also assumed the position unopposed.
The other positions saw Chifuniro Eliazar Banda and Charity Munyimbili being elected public relations officer and general secretary, respectively, whereas Jacinta Phiri retained the treasurer general position.
Juliet Neba was elected budding writers’ desk chairperson whereas the religious desk chairperson seat went to Bishop Sylvester Chabuka.
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