The Poets

Dr. Samar Ali, an Egyptian writer and a member of the IAO (international association of orthodontics). Tannoura was her first published collection of English poems in March 2009. She also published a number of Arabic short stories. Her second collection La Cantadora was released in January 2014.

From 2008- 2013 Samar is a writer in Al-Batt Al Aswad (the ugly ducklings group), a group for writing and storytelling under a feminist umbrella. She was the first Egyptian writer to get accepted in El-Gouna Writers Residency Program back in June 2010. She coached “Arabesque Creative Writing Workshop” a workshop that was held from December 2012- March 2013 in Ain Shams University, as well as another writing workshop about feminism and writing in collaboration with “Nazra”. She is also one of the co-founders of “Meshabbek” the winning project of “Culture Shift”, that was organized by the British Council in May 2012.

Prof. Ammar Banni is an Algerian poet and Professor of Education. He is Co-author of various book publications, like Harmonious Civilization (2009); World Harmony/Peace Academy (2008); Magna Carta of Harmony (2007); Harmonious Era Calendar (2006); About Peace and Peacemaking(2014); a-Harmonious Era Calendar (2006); b-Magna Carta of Harmony for information civilisation: Toward Social justice and Global peace; b- World Harmony/Peace Academy; c-Harmonious Civilisation; d-Harmonious Strategy for 21st Century; e- About Peace and Peacemaking /Cook Communication/USA-March 1, 2014.

For his literary works he is awarded with the Universal Ambassador for Peace (Geneva, France) /2008 (Circle of universal Ambassadors for Peace: Geneva; “Honorary Poet of Peace from Harmony (2008), by Global Harmony Association - St Peterburg Russia. And the award “Valentine Peace Project from International World Peace”(2010) by: World Peace Rose Garden in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

Prof. Justo Bolekia Boleká is an Equatorial Guinean poet.

Tendai Manduwa is a Zimbabwean internationally celebrated award winning performing poet, actor, speaker and TV moderator. He performed and graced a number of festivals as a guest Performer in some parts of Africa, Europe and Asia. Together with 19 other poets from around the globe he co-Authored The Enchanted World, an Anthology which was published in India. He also Authored his first poetry book Marry My Language and his motivational book Nuggets of Success. He has done a number of TV movies and Theatrical shows. He is the founder of a youth dynamic civic society organization Awake Zimbabwe Trust, he also founded a massive and vibrant performance poetry movement called Poetic License.

Althea Mark-Romeo  born in Antigua, West Indies, Althea Romeo-Mark is an educator and writer who grew up in St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. She has lived and taught in St. Thomas, Liberia (1976-1990), London, England (1990-1991), and in Switzerland since 1991. She was a lecturer at the University of Liberia (1976-1990) and is a founding member of the Liberian Association of Writers (LAW). She is poetry editor for Seabreeze: Journal of Liberian Contemporary Literature. She was awarded the Marguerite Cobb McKay Prize by The Caribbean Writer in June, 2009 for short story “Bitterleaf, (set in Liberia).” If Only the Dust Would Settle is her last poetry collection.

Published work in 2014 include poems in Tongues of the Ocean, Fitting into One’s Skin,” A review of Joanne Hillhouse’s novel, Oh Gad! in the Antigua and Barbuda Review of Books, “A Story of Immigrants,” personal essay, The Caribbean Writer, Volume 28; Poems for the Hazara: An Anthology and Collaborative Poem (multi-lingual); several poems and an essay in WomanSpeak: A journal of writing and Art by Caribbean Women. She has been a guest poet at the International Poetry Festival of Medellin, Colombia and the Kistrech International Poetry Festival, Kissi, Kenya.

Odoh Okenyodo is a Nigerian writer, activist poet, journalist, public relations and advertising practitioner. He has worked with many literary organisations in Nigeria, including the Kaduna Writers' League (KWL), Abuja Literary Society (ALS) and the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA). He is Nigeria Country Coordinator of the Splendors of Dawn Poetry Foundation. In 2005, Odoh co-edited Camouflage: Best of Contemporary Writing from Nigeria, an anthology of new Nigerian writers, which included works by the very renowned contemporary Nigerian writers such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Helon Habila and Toni Kan. His book of poems, intriguingly titled From a Poem to Its Creator, was released in March 2009 by Hybun Publications International to high critical acclaim. The poetry collection From a Poem to Its Creator was shortlisted for The Nigeria Prize for Literature in 2009, the year in which the sponsors, Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited, did not award it. he is also currently concluding recording and mixing of an audio poetry collection of various Nigerian writers in a CD titled “Raising Our Voice”.

Hakeem Adamu Tahiru is a native of Walembelle, a farming community in the Galibaga Traditional Area of the Sissala East District in the Upper West Region of Ghana. He holds Master of Laws in (LLM) Petroleum Law and Policy from the Centre for Energy, Petroleum and Minerals Resources Law and Policy (CEPMLP), University of Dundee – UK and a BA degree in Political Science (major) and Information Studies (minor) from the University of Ghana, Legon. As a young Ghanaian poet, he draws inspiration from his childhood and youthful experiences, observations and meditation, to write inspirational and sensational poems. He currently has a manuscript of over 200 poems on different themes such as politics, religion, morality, love, and justice. His experiences and observations, growing up in single-parent family following the tragic and untimely demise of his father ignited the candle of deep thinking in him on the behavioral patterns, dynamics and outcomes of people in society which eventually triggered the his journey of poetry.

Rosmarie Wilson is an African-American writer and publisher.

Emmanuel Adebola Adekeyes.