Alex kadiri is the winner of the 2023 Afritondo short story prize

Alex Kadiri was announced as the 2023 Afritondo Short Story Prize winner in an online ceremony on Friday, April 7.

His winning entry, “The Hyena and The Two-Headed Goat”, was described as “mesmerising” by Doreen Baingana, one of the judges of the 2023 prize.

“[This story] really spoke about a community’s pain and love, the forces of good and evil clashing,” Doreen added.

The judges were also very complimentary of the entries on the longlist.

Ayesha Harruna Attah said: “I thought that the stories were amazing, they were diverse, they were surprising. They were such tender stories. They upended the theme of aliens, and what was interesting to me was outsiders became familiar in almost every single one of these stories.”

Alex is the first Nigerian to win the prize.

Winners of the Afritondo Short Story Prize receive $1000, while writers on the shortlist receive $100 each.