Imagined Realities and the African Writer's Role: An Interview with novelist, playwright and scholar, Francis B. Nyamnjoh

Interviewed by Kangsen Feka Wakai (Originally published in The Frontier Telegraph)

On the African writer's role in a global world

I think the role of the African writer was well articulated by Chinua Achebe in his collection of essays, Home and Exile where he argues that we are there to capture the story of the African community, at home and in the Diaspora, with the respect, dignity and sensitivity that it requires given that Africa, as a continent has suffered and continues to suffer from stereotypes.   Thus, our role is to celebrate what is positive about our community and to highlight the challenges within that community.