Escape the City - Golden Baobab

Golden Baobab

http://www.goldenbaobab.org/

Accra, Ghana

About us

Golden Baobab is a Pan-African social enterprise established in 2008 to stimulate the development of world-class African children’s content. We address the dearth of quality African children’s literature that reflects African children's experiences. Our mission is to ensure the creation of high quality literary content for children and young adults by discovering, nurturing and promoting African talent.

What we do

Golden Baobab currently runs:

The Golden Baobab Prize: the prestigious annual literary award that inspires African writers to create stellar works of literature for children and young adults and rewards their efforts with a cash prize.
Golden Baobab Workshops: our outreach initiative which organizes programs and workshops, develops talent, and provides resources to writers and illustrators.
Golden Baobab Literary Agency: a channel that partners promising writers discovered through our prize with leading publishers to ensure the creation of stellar African literature for children and young adults and ensures that a fascinating children’s story from an African writer goes from an idea to a book. It is the only literary agency of its kind in the world.

Why are we exciting?

Golden Baobab has had overwhelming social impact in its four years of existence:

It has organized the most competitive literary prize on the African continent spearheading a renaissance in African children’s literature.
It has inspired the writing of over 850 African children’s and young adult stories from 19 African countries.
It has produced three winning stories picked up for publishing and distribution into schools in 15 African countries.
The organization’s co-founder and executive director Deborah Ahenkorah has been named by renowned Swedish children’s rights organization, http://http://reachforchange.org/ghana/" title="" target="_blank">Reach for Change, as “one of Ghana’s leading social entrepreneurs working to promote children’s rights.’
Golden Baobab has been named by leading international social sector investors, http://http://www.echoinggreen.org/" title="" target="_blank">Echoing Green, as one of fifteen “most visionary, game-changing social enterprises in the world today.”
The organization has garnered the support of leading donor organizations: The Global Fund for Children, the African Library Project, Reach for Change, and Echoing Green.
The organization has recruited the top industry talent. Past and current judges and board advisors include Jay Heale, Nana Ayebia Clark, Ama Ata Aidoo, Helon Habila, Binyavanga Wainana, Meshack Asare, Atinuke Akinyemi and Maya Ajmera.
The organization has co-hosted an Illustrators Workshop with IBBY Ghana. Resulting illustrations based on Mirirai Moyo’s Diki, The Little Earthworm, Golden Baobab’s 2010 Best Story for ages 8-11 years, were displayed at the London IBBY Congress in August, 2012