Book O’Clock, a literary organization that seeks to promote literacy in northern Nigeria, organizes an annual arts and literary prize for young writers. This year’s competition focused on mental health and was open to school children and teens in the northern Nigerian city of Sokoto.

Maria Saad Liman, a student at Government Girls College Sokoto, won first place. Fatima Bello Yahya of Brilliant Footsteps International Academy won second, while Ochidi Favour of Royal Comprehensive School came in third. They received N50,000, N30,000, and N20,000, respectively, in addition to books. Collections of books were also donated to the libraries of their respective schools.

The competition received 42 entries from both public and private schools. Students went through two rounds of judging, including a writing and performance round, around the prompts “What’s On Your Mind?” and “My Mental Health: Hear Me!” Participants were encouraged to explore the often unseen aspects of their mental health. The first written round was judged by three young Nigerian writers, Isaiah Adepoju, Ugochukwu Anadị and Haneefah Abdulrahman, and the second performance round by four writers and poets in Sokoto, led by Mazeed Mukhtar Oyeleye.

The judges remarked that Maria’s presentation as “eye-opening, insightful, well-researched with the confidence of a speaker who is passionate about what they speak. A very memorable performance.” Fatima’s presentation was “an emotional rendition of the woes of mental illness often swept under the carpet. A beautiful poem with verses that will stay with us.” Favour’s performance was described as “a sad narrative about the lack of mental health resources in schools. Easily a winning performance.”

In addition to these prizes, students of Sautul-Haqq School, the youngest participants in the competition, were given cash prizes by Book O’Clock’s patron, Dr Mansur Isah Buhari, co-founder of Greenline Nurture Initiative, Dr Kazeem Aremu and Sir Christopher Emelife.

The closing and awards ceremony, held on June 11, 2024, included the performance competition and two public lectures on mental health geared towards teenagers.

The Book O’Clock Anniversary Prize 2024 was sponsored by the Centre for Health Ethics Law and Development (CHELD), Greenline Nurture Initiative and supported by Mentally Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI).

Congratulations to the winners and Book O’Clock on their fourth anniversary!