All is set for the inaugural Abuja Festival of Literature and Ideas, which is scheduled to hold from October 9 and 10, 2026. The inaugural festival is a fulfilment of the dream of Book Buzz Foundation Director, Lola Shoneyin, who first conceived the idea 14 years ago, when she was curating Infusion, a popular monthly gathering for music, art and culture in Abuja.

The festival, which is epected to attract writers, thinkers, scientists and cultural voices from Nigeria and around the world,reflects a broader ambition to establish Abuja as an important destination for intellectual exchange, while strengthening cultural connections between Nigeria, Europe and the wider world.

For Shoneyin, founder of the Book Buzz Foundation, “Abuja deserves to be part of the global conversations around literature, ideas and culture. We’re presenting an event that brings different worlds together to discuss peace, technology, identity, democracy, creativity, and some of the big questions of our time about. From 2009 – 2012, I organised a monthly event called Infusion in Abuja, so, I am confident that this event will be exciting for book-
lovers and people in search of high-quality, engaging literary events in Abuja.”

The festival is more than a promotional event, it is a welcome call to reimagine the role of books as dynamic agents of cultural and educational transformation in the country’s capital. The two-day gathering is expected to bring writers, thinkers, policymakers, artists and audiences for conversations about some of the most urgent questions shaping human lives today.

The Festival, which holds at The Nordic, Jabi, Abuja, is presented in partnership with the European Union Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, with the participation of the Embassies of Italy, Spain and Sweden.

The participating European missions have helped bring an exceptional group of international writers, thinkers and practitioners to Abuja, creating a programme that moves confidently between literature, politics, technology, science, culture and public life.

Among the festival’s international guests is Sergio Jaramillo, former High Commissioner for Peace in Colombia and one of the principal architects of the Colombian peace process.

In his event, How Divided Societies Learn to Dialogue, Jaramillo will explore what becomes possible when people on opposite sides of conflict find ways to listen, negotiate and rebuild trust.

Zimbabwean writer and academic, Simukai Chigudu, will discuss his acclaimed memoir, Chasing Freedom, a deeply personal exploration of family, colonialism, race, migration and the complicated meaning of freedom after empire.

Science and imagination meet in Roberto Trotta’s Starborn, while Gloria Chinyere Okwu discusses On Close Examination, her account of survival, womanhood, illness and reclaiming personal agency.

In response to some of the defining debates of the time, the festival will host Stephane MGrueso who will discuss the impact of artificial intelligence on culture and creative work.

Shoneyin said: “Nigerians need to start having serious conversations about how AI could affect critical sectors, including banking, businesses and personal security, while considering appropriate regulations and safeguards.”

According to the festival curator, “we need to understand what kind of regulations need to be put in place. We need to have some kind of response and know where to even start should we find ourselves in certain situations.”

She said the rapid development of AI means its potential risks can no longer be treated as distant concerns, particularly as technology becomes increasingly integrated into everyday life.

“We will also host Swede Carl Heath who will provide insight in a session, aptly titled, Musings on the Internet, which will examine what AI means for authorship, intellectual property, privacy, artistic labour and the future of human creativity.”

AFLI will also turn its attention firmly towards Northern Nigeria. A panel on Exciting Themes in New Northern Nigerian Women’s Fiction brings together Nana Sule, Hadiza El-Rufai, Fatima Bala and Edify Yakusak, while Youth Speak session asks what the future looks like for young people in the region, featuring Khadija Sanusi, Maryam Laushi Dasilva,
Raymond J. Yusuff, Usman Hayatu and Nana Fatima Bello.

Other conversations range from to an evening of poetry featuring Deborah Johnson, Moyosola Olowookure, Salim Yunusa and Mariam Abdullahi.