The Poetry Africa Festival is celebrating 25 consecutive years under the theme “Unmute: Power to the Poet” and sets the stage for poetry with a curatorial focus on quality, variety, renewal and reflection. The programme will feature seminars, workshops, performances, book launches, open mic sessions and music.

This is the fifth year that Institut Ramon Llull has collaborated with the festival, and this year, in 2021, the guest poets will be Míriam Cano and Maria Josep Escrivà.

On 13th October at 3 pm., via Zoom, Cano will take part, together with Siphokazi Jonas and Malika Ndlovu from South Africa, in She’s my Sister, a celebration of women poets whose voices of courage continue to transform our societies. This is the second time that Cano, winner of the Martí Dot Poetry Award 2012, has been invited to the event.

Valencian poet Maria Josep Escrivà will have her turn on the 13th at 5 pm., through a video produced by Institut Ramon Llull. Malika Ndlovu (SA), Shailja Patel (Kenya), Weronika Lewandowska (Poland), Yuuri Miki (Japan), Jahrose Jafta (SA), Hazel Tobo (SA), Ninfa Maria (Chile) and Charly W. (Cameroon) will also take part in Unmute: Power to the Poet. It is a space to utilise the power that poets hold in a pandemic world where it is easy to get lost among algorithms, fake news and authoritarian tendencies.

Due to Covid-19, the majority of the festival programme will be presented online, with two live events taking place in Durban. You can follow Poetry Africa for free on its Facebook page and YouTube channel.