African women working across publishing, literature and the creative industries are calling for stronger professional networks, better access to funding and greater opportunities to reach international markets.
The call emerged during the Women Book Creatives Round Table held on 30 September 2026 at Norrsken House Kigali, as part of the Umurage International Book & Art Festival 2026.
The festival is organised by Arise Education in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Arts, with support from the British Council and the Embassy of Germany in Rwanda. Under the theme “The Future is Written: Human Voices, Intelligent Tools,” the festival brings attention to the role of books, culture, technology and creative enterprise in shaping Africa’s future.
The women’s round table placed a particular focus on the economic and professional realities facing women across the book value chain, from authors and publishers to illustrators, booksellers and literary promoters.
The central question was not simply how to celebrate women’s creativity, but how to build the conditions that allow it to grow into sustainable businesses, reach wider audiences and contribute to Africa’s knowledge economy.
For Mutesi Gasana, founder of Arise Education and chief executive of Ubuntu Publishers, strengthening the book sector requires investment in both reading and the systems that bring books to readers.
For more than a decade, Arise Education has worked to promote reading and expand access to books. Its initiatives supporting women in publishing include a nine-week training programme for female publishers in 2025 and the Women Book Awards held in March 2026.
The round table continued this work by bringing together practitioners, institutional representatives and international partners to discuss market access, financing and professional collaboration.
Germany’s Ambassador to Rwanda, Heike Uta Dettmann, highlighted the role of books in connecting cultures and creating opportunities for international exchange. Emma Claudine Ntirenganya, Director General of Communications at the City of Kigali, delivered a keynote address titled Writing Our Own Future, emphasising the importance of women participating in the development of new technologies and retaining ownership of their creative voices.
The programme also featured Representative Huldah Momanyi-Hiltsley, alongside panel discussions on taking African books to international markets and improving funding opportunities for women creatives.
The discussions reflect a wider challenge for the African publishing sector: ensuring that creative talent is matched by the financing, distribution networks, professional relationships and intellectual property protections needed to build sustainable careers.
As part of the wider Umurage festival, the gathering connected these concerns to a broader conversation about the future of African storytelling in an era of rapid technological change.
Its message was that women’s creativity needs more than recognition. It needs markets, investment, partnerships and opportunities that allow African stories to travel beyond borders.
