This year’s Niyi Osundare International Poetry Festival (NOIPOFEST) will commemorate the poet’s admission into Nigeria National Order of Merit (NNOM) Award, on Wednesday, December 11 at Room 32, Department of English, the University of Ibadan. It will be chaired by Ambassador Yemi Farounmbi.
NNOM is the nation’s highest honour for distinguished creative and intellectual achievements.

According to NOIPOEST Founder/Director, Dele Morankiyo, it is noteworthy that 10 years after the historic national award, the world renowned ‘people’s poet’ as Osundare is fondly called, “has continued to take his Arts higher. Only recently, he won laurels including Lifetime Achievement awards simultaneously across three continents surprisingly in non-English speaking countries where his poetry has broken the language barriers.”

The event, which is a collaboration between Trustees of NOIPOFEST and the Department of English, University of Ibadan, has the theme, “Niyi Osundare: Ten Years After, the Harvest Continues.” It will feature robust and inclusive activities such as poetry reading and spoken words performances, cultural displays and a reading by the celebrated poet from his latest collection of poems.

This will be followed by a panel discussion by such erudite scholars who have followed the trajectory of Osundare’s oeuvre as Prof. Nelson Fashina, HOD, Department of English, University of Ibadan; Prof. Wumi Raji, Department of Dramatic Arts, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife; Prof. Taiwo Oloruntoba-Oju, Department. of English, University of Ilorin and Dr. Olanike Olaleru, Department of English and Linguistics, Kwara State University, Malete.

Niyi Osundare International Poetry Festival (NOIPOFEST) is a yearly festival in honour of Professor Niyi Osundare, a multiple award winning poet and public affairs commentator, instituted in 2015. The festival has been held at the University of Ibadan, Lead City University, Ibadan, University of Calabar and Bishop Abiodun Adetiloye hall, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, sponsored by then governor of the State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi. It is usually a two-day event with pomp and ceremony. “The festival will be in full gear next year,” assured Morakinyo.