The Professor Moussa Traoré Poetry Prize

The University Of Cape Coast Department Of English and the Creative Writers’ Club invite students in Ghanaian Tertiary Institutions (colleges, universities and polytechnics) to submit original work for the inaugural Prof. Moussa Traoré Poetry Prize; honoring the Head of English Department at the University of Cape Coast whose work is constantly shaping African and African diaspora literature. In the spirit of Professor Traoré’s expertise in Postcoloniality and Black Diaspora literature, we welcome poems that interrogate, construct or deconstruct black history, power, migration, slavery, identity, memory, and belonging. Submissions may experiment with form and voice while engaging African and diasporic experiences. Emerging and established poets are encouraged to apply.

ELIGIBILITY AND GUIDELINES
• Open to Students in Ghanaian tertiary institutions. No AI generated works
• Writers must not have published a full-length manuscript in any genre
• Only two unpublished poems per person (any length, style, or subject)
• Poems must incorporate the outlined themes (Maximum 30 Lines).
REWARD
• First Prize receives 2000 GH Cedis. Autographed books from Prof. M. Traoré
• Autographed books and mentorship from Gabriel Awuah Mainoo and Amoafowaa Sefa Cecilia (Mum Cee)
• Copy of the Ghana Poetry Festival Anthology ‘‘What They Say Does Not Have an End’’.

• First Runner Up receives: 1000 GH Cedis. Autographed books from Prof. M. Traoré
• Autographed books and mentorship from Gabriel Awuah Mainoo
• Copy of the Ghana Poetry Festival Anthology ‘‘What They Say Does Not Have an End’’.

HOW TO SUBMIT
• Please make sure typeset is Times New Roman, font size 12 and 1.5 space.
• Submit-in-person: Type and print poems in an A4 sheet, address to the office of the English Department. Brown envelope please!
• In the envelope include: copy of school ID, Printed Poems and date of submission
• Behind envelope include your name, contact and “Prof. M. Traoré Poetry Prize”
• To submit via email: Send copy of school ID, and poems in a word document to Traore.poetryprize@outlook.com  include a brief biodata. Have the subject line as ‘‘Prof. M. Traoré Poetry Prize’’. No PDF attachments.
• Submissions that do not comply with guidelines will be automatically rejected 

PRIZE OPENS FEBRUARY 14th 2026 AND CLOSES APRIL 14th 11:59 GMT
FOR INQUIRIES, WHATSAPP US +447565125428/ CALL 0548460517. EMAIL: Traore.poetryprize@outlook.com 

Moussa Traoré is Professor at the Department of English of the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He teaches and researches in Comparative Literature, Postcoloniality and Black Diasporan Studies. Prof Traoré has published several papers in journals of high repute and he presented papers at international conferences. He is the co-editor of two books ‘Fight for Freedom: Black Resistance and Identity’, ‘Realigning and Repositioning Africa: Confronting challenges and charting its own courses in the 21st century’ and the author of ‘Pulse of the Sub-Saharan Dunes: The Socioeconomic and Political moments’.  He has taught in Africa, Asia and the USA.


JUDGE
Gabriel Awuah Mainoo is a Ghanaian creative practitioner. He has received fellowships from the Hong Kong Baptist University, Aarhus Literature Center in Denmark, the Library of Africa, and the African Diaspora, Wintertuin Curacao, and others. He is a grant recipient of the Danish Art Foundation through the South Gate Creative Writing School. Mainoo is the author of “Lyrical Textiles’’ (Illuminated Press, U.S.), ‘‘We are Moulting Birds’’ (Light Factory Publication, Canada), and a co-author of “Hvor End Havet Skyller Dig Op” (Forlaget Silkerfyret, Denmark). His awards include the Africa Haiku Prize, the Library of Africa and the African Diaspora chapbook prize, the Singapore Poetry Prize, the 6th Ghana Association of Writers Literary Awards, the Samira Bawumia Literature Prize, the 1st Wanjohi Prize for African Poetry, and others. He edits poetry for Goat Shed Press (UK) and The Journal of African Youth Literature. His craft can be found in The London Reader, The New Orleans Review, Fiyah Magazine, The Michigan Quarterly Review, Prairie Fire, The Ex-Puritan, Wales Haiku Journal, The Woodward Review and others. Mainoo was a headline poet at the Lyra Bristol Poetry Festival in England (2024) under the auspices of Bath Spa University, Ashesi University and the Arts Council of England.