2. 2 | www.kwani.org
Soma Schools Tour was started as part of our commitment to the
growth of the creative industries in Kenya. The key objectives of
Soma are developing and promoting creative writing and the arts to
the youth in a school environment that has seen the arts scrapped
from examinable curriculum, introduce African Contemporary
Literature and donate books from the prestigious Kwani? Series.
In The Danger of a Single Story, Chimamanda Adichie (author of Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun, The
Thing Around Your Neck and Americanah) says
“…all I had read were books in which characters were foreign. I had become convinced that books by their very
nature had to have foreigners in them and had to be about things with which I could not personally identify.
Things changed when I discovered African books. There weren’t many of them available, and they weren’t quite
as easy to find as the foreign books”.
Writers published by Kwani? in the past and currently, speak to the high school students about their own
journeys to becoming writers and the students learn what it takes to get a book from a manuscript to a
published product in a bookshop. Students also get an opportunity to engage writers on various topics related
to creative writing.
Since 2013, Kwani? Soma Schools Tour has impacted 21 schools and universities, 1,779 students and faculty
and donated 500 books.
Books on the Tour are at a highly reduced cost of Ksh 500 each, they include Kizuizini by Joseph Muthee, Stone
Hills of Maragoli by Stanley Gazemba, The True Story of David Munyakei by Billy Kahora, Tale of Kasaya by
Eva Kasaya, One Day I Will Write About This Place Binyavanga Wainaina, Boy, Interrupted by Saah Millimono,
Hidding In Plain Sight by Nuruddin Farah, To See the Mountain and Other Stories (2011 Caine Prize Anthology)
and African Violet and Other Stories (Caine Prize 2012 Anthology), Taty Went West by Nikhil Singh, Lusaka Punk
(2015 Caine Prize Anthology) But here are small clear refractions by Ed Pavlic and Dust by Yvonne Adhiambo
Owuor.
For more about these books, see http://bit.ly/1lhmUhT
4. 4 | www.kwani.org
KIZUIZINI
by Joseph Muthee
Joseph Muthee was born in 1928. He
spent seven years in detention during
the Kenyan Emergency. He was taken
in at the age of 23 and emerged, at 30, a
man mature beyond his years. In prison
he endured casual torture and hardship,
hunger and precariousness.
He currently lives and works as a farmer
in Nyeri, Kenya.
THE STONE HILLS OF MARAGOLI
by Stanley Gazemba
Stanley Gazemba was born in Vihiga,
Western Kenya, in 1974 and studied at
the Kakamega High School. The African
Review of Books described his book as
“an ordinary tale of love, celebration,
betrayal and revenge… all in a context
that is at once familiar for its emotional
impact and unfamiliar for its cultural
environment”.
THE TRUE STORY OF DAVID
MUNYAKEI
by Billy Kahora
In April 1992, David Sadera
Munyakei, a newly employed
clerk at the Central Bank of Kenya
started noticing irregularities in
the export compensation claims
he was processing.
On July 31 2006, Kenya’s biggest
whistleblower passed away in
rural obscurity, 14 years after
exposing the Goldenberg scandal,
Kenya’s biggest economic scandal
to date, estimated at over USD 1
billion.
Billy Kahora recounts his story.
TALE OF KASAYA
by Eva Kasaya
In 1991, Eva Kasaya, a 13-year old girl
dropped out of school in rural Western
Kenya and came to Nairobi to work as a
domestic servant. For several years she
was consistently physically and sexually
harassed by subsequent employers.
When she turned 19, she managed to go
back to school and thereafter trained as a
dressmaker. She also started writing about
her life during this period, having never
given up on becoming a published writer.
DUST
by Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor
Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor
is a Kenyan fiction writer,
conservationist, cultural activist;
past Executive Director of the
Zanzibar International Film
Festival. Yvonne Owuor won
the 2003 Caine Prize for African
Writing for Weight of Whispers, a
story told from the perspective
of a refugee fleeing after the 1994
massacres.
For more about these books,
see http://bit.ly/1lhmUhT
THE BOOKS ON TOUR
5. www.kwani.org | 5
TO SEE THE MOUNTAIN AND OTHER STORIES’,
‘AFRICAN VIOLET AND OTHER STORIES & LUSASKA
PUNK AND OTHER STORIES
The Caine Prize for African Writing is named in memory of
the late Sir Michael Caine, former Chairman of Booker plc. He
was Chairman of Africa 95, and Chairman of the Booker Prize
management committee for almost 25 years.
The Prize is open to writers from anywhere in Africa for
work published in English and focuses on the short story,
awarding a prize of £10,000.
BOY INTERRUPTED
by Saah Millimono
Liberian Saah Millimono’s debut is a
moving account of a boy’s life in a time
of crisis. Tarnue is at times clear-eyed
and wise beyond his years, at others
bewildered by the impact of national
upheaval on his already challenging
existence as Charles Taylor’s forces
enter Liberia.
HIDING IN PLAIN SIGHT
by Nuruddin Farah
A provocative, unforgettable tale
about family, freedom, and loyalty. A
departure in theme and setting, Hiding
in Plain Sight is a profound exploration
of the tensions between liberty and
obligation, the ways in which gender
and sexual orientation define us, and the
unintended consequences of the secrets
we keep.
TATY WENT WEST
by Nikhil Singh
An introduction to an electrifying new
talent – an imagination unfettered by any
known convention. As Taty navigates the
collapse of an already chaotic society,
struggling against present danger while
confronting the demons of her own past,
her story is narrated in prose that soars
with elegance and swagger in equal
measure. For more about these books,
see http://bit.ly/1lhmUhT
THE BOOKS ON TOUR
6. 6 | www.kwani.org
Fill gap of lack of
examinable arts
curriculum in
public schools
Soon after the
introduction of Free
Primary Education in
Kenya, followed the
removal of arts subjects
in the examinable
curriculum, leaving
students who were arts
oriented with only the
Annual Music and Drama
Festivals to channel their
creativity.
No creative
writing programs
+ lack of
contemporary
reading material
Students follow a set
standard that they then
reproduce at exams.
Rarely do schools provide
students an opportunity
to develop their innate
creative abilities.
Our commitment
to the growth of
creative industries
+ creative
expression
Kwani Trust was founded
as a space to develop
new writing by providing
training opportunities.
To inspire a new
generation of
creative writers
The engagement between
published writers and
upcoming writers allows
us to inspire a new crop
of writers so as to keep
the Kenyan literary space
vibrant.
Why the Soma Tour?
Book signing at Alliance Girls High School,
Kikuyu
7. www.kwani.org | 7
60%
male
40%
female
Kwani? Soma
impact in schools
by gender
since 2013
Presentations of poetry
by students
A light segment during the event
to loosen up the atmosphere and
provide the talented students an
opportunity to hone and showcase
their craft.
A talk on the book process
Since 2013, Kwani? Soma Schools
Tour has impacted 21 schools and
universities, 1,779 students and
faculty
Presentation of books
to school
In 2013, Kwani? donated a total
of 250 books from the prestigious
“Kwani? Series” to schools and
community libraries. In 2017 & 2017,
with your support we are looking
to increase book donations by 100
books per year.
A talk by two to three
writers on their personal
journeys and reading of
book excerpt
The writers have varied
backgrounds, each with a unique
journey that led to their becoming
a published author. It gives insight
to the students into what the
possibilities are for their future
EVENT DETAILS
8. 8 | www.kwani.org
Alliance Girls High School
Kikuyu
Alliance Boys High School
Kikuyu
Alliance Boys High School
Kikuyu
Allidina Vishram High School,
Mombasa
9. www.kwani.org | 9
Encourage youth to take up writing and publishing
careers
• Give the youth insight into what it takes to be a creative writer and
contribute to telling their own story
• Present the book process and introduce the various careers between
the pages
• Inspire new generation of creative writers
Introduce the youth to African Contemporary Literature
• Literature outside the examinable set books in schools, to broaden
their perspective
• Allow students to see new possibilities for themselves in the writers
before them
Leverage support from corporates to donate books from
the prestigious “Kwani? Series” to schools
• Partner with us in making the books available in school libraries
• Enable the reconnaissance team to go further a field to reach remote
schools in North Eastern and Northern Kenya
• Show commitment to the growth of creative industries and creative
expression
PROJECT OBJECTIVES
10. 10 | www.kwani.org
Aga Khan High School,
Mombasa
Alliance Boys High School
Kikuyu
Lions High School, Kisumu
Alliance Girls High School,
Kikuyu
11. www.kwani.org | 1111
Why Partner?
• Utilizing engagement with education pillar
under your CSR docket
• Leveraging an existing engagement in
investing in educational initiatives
• Prospecting school faculty for
your products
• Association with the leading literary
organisation/brand in East Africa
• Brand visibility; recognition, brand
placement on location, social media
and local press
Y
OU
KWANI?
KWANI?W
R
ITERS
• a caring brand
• product sampling
• logistical support
• personal journey
• writing process
• subsidized books for
library
• talk on book process
• careers in publishing
• submission process
• product sampling
BOOKS
ABLE TO
MAKE INFORMED
CAREER CHOICES
WHAT IT TAKES
TO BE A WRITER
BRAND
AWARENESS
YOU AND SOMA
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12. 12 | www.kwani.org
ALMASI
[DIAMOND]
main sponsor
• Named as main sponsor
• Brand visibility / association with 10 schools in 2017
• Opportunity to co-brand event
• Your representative accompanies our contact person in making
corporate soft-landing in all schools
• Website banner on Soma webpage
• 10 invitations to special 2017 Kwani? events (book launches,
intimate writers’ conversations)
• First choice of seating Annual Kwani? gala dinner and logo on red
carpet banner
• Acknowledgement in all branding materials related to Kwani?
Soma Tour [t-shirt, e-flier, web page]
• Naming on each individual book title donated to schools as the
book donor “Book do nated by...”
• Invitations to participate in select 2017 Kwani? events
• Photo and video coverage of all Soma tour events
• Media/press mentions as main sponsor
• Present Kwani? books to host schools
• 4 times per school
Ksh.1.6 million
100 books marked
“Donated by Kwani
Trust & You” donated
to 10 of the schools
on the tour
11,000
TWITTER
16,000
MAILING LIST
8,442
FACEBOOK
Kwani? Social Media mentions as co-sponsor: 35,442 followers
SPONSORSHIP VALUE ASSESSMENT
OFFER
13. www.kwani.org | 13
11,000
TWITTER
16,000
MAILING LIST
8,442
FACEBOOK
Kwani? Social Media mentions as co-sponsor: 35,442 followers
• Co-Sponsor status
• Logo on webpage and event banners
• Invitations to special Kwani? events
• 4 Invitations/tickets to special events (gala dinners, book
launches, intimate writers’ conversations)
• Association with three schools on the tour
• Media/press mentions as co-sponsor
YAKUTI SAMAWATI
[SAPPHIRE]
co-sponsor
Ksh.650,000
40 books marked
“Donated by
Kwani Trust & You”
distributed to 3 the
schools on the tour
SPONSORSHIP VALUE ASSESSMENT
OFFER
14. 14 | www.kwani.org
DHAHABU
[GOLD]
partner
• Partner status
• Logo on webpage
• Invitations to special Kwani? Events
• Association with one school on the tour
• Media/press mentions as Partner status
SPONSORSHIP VALUE ASSESSMENT
OFFER
15 books marked
“Donated by
Kwani Trust & You”
distributed to a
single school on the
tour
Ksh. 250,000
11,000
TWITTER
16,000
MAILING LIST
8,442
FACEBOOK
Kwani? Social Media mentions as co-sponsor: 35,442 followers
15. www.kwani.org | 15
You and
Kwani?
Soma
Y
OU
KWANI?
KWANI?W
R
ITERS
• a caring brand
• product sampling
• logistical support
• donate subsidized books
to school library
• personal journey
• writing process
• subsidized books for
library
• talk on book process
• careers in publishing
• submission process
• product sampling
BOOKS
ABLE TO
MAKE INFORMED
CAREER CHOICES
WHAT IT TAKES
TO BE A WRITER
BRAND
AWARENESS
www.kwani.org | 15
