2020 Kwéyòl Poetry Writing Winners

THE Saint Lucia National Commission for UNESCO is pleased to announce the 2020 winners of the annual Kwéyòl Poetry Writing Competition.

• First Place and winner of EC$1,000.00 Mr. Damian René
• Second Place and winner of EC$ 800.00 Ms. Anazilta Tench
• Third Place and winner of EC$ 500.00 Ms. Jacqueline Simon

In addition to the prize money, the three winners will each receive a plaque on which their winning poems have been inscribed. All participants will receive a Certificate of Participation and a copy of the Kwéyòl Dictionary published by the Folk Research Centre.

The Saint Lucia National Commission for UNESCO thanks Bank of Saint Lucia Ltd (BOSL), Financial Investment and Consultancy Services Ltd (FICS) and the St Lucia Electricity Services Limited (LUCELEC) for their interest in, and support for UNESCO’s efforts “at linguistic variety through poetic expression, and to offer indigenous languages the opportunity to be heard within their communities”, and as well, for their commitment to the Saint Lucia National Commission for UNESCO’s “celebration of language diversity and the expression of our indigenous creole language and rich cultural heritage”.

The companies were the sponsors of this year’s competition.

The annual Kwéyòl Poetry Writing Competition forms part of Saint Lucia’s observance of International Mother Language Day (21st February) and World Poetry Day (21st March). The Competition – which also coincided with the celebration of Saint Lucia’s 41st Independence Anniversary (22nd February 2020) – was held under the theme: “Lè-a wivé: Annou mété tètnou ansanm”. The annual competition also provided an opportunity for Saint Lucians to reflect on the theme for Saint Lucia’s independence Anniversary which calls on us to consider how far we have come as a country and to think about how, individually and collectively, we can chart a course for Saint Lucia’s future that will ensure peace and prosperity for all Saint Lucians.