The Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards, now in their third year, are hosted every two years to recognise and reward Namibian writers, poets, and visual artists who have been published in Doek! Literary Magazine, the country’s first and only literary magazine which curates fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art from Namibia, Africa, and the African diaspora.
In compiling this year’s shortlist Ndawedwa Denga Hanghuwo, Samuel Mayinoti, Sylvia Schlettwein, and Michelle Van Wyk—the judges of the Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards—were required to select short fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and visual art that showcased the best of Namibian writing. With each entry on the longlist having already been extensively edited during the publishing process, the selection process presented the panel of judges with the challenging task of choosing writings and visual art that showcased the power and depth of storytelling from the country.
Over the course of a month, this year’s judges deliberated about each entry’s storytelling prowess, the level of the craft displayed in its compilation, the uniqueness of the underlying narrative, as well as its resonance with Doek!’s Namibian and international readership.
Presented in alphabetical order are this year’ Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards shortlistees.
FICTION
Hugh Ellis-Mwiya
for “Flesh Of The Sun”
published in Issue 15: July, 2025
Hugh Ellis is a Namibian poet, writer, and Senior Lecturer in Journalism at the Namibia University of Science and Technology. His collection of poems Hakahana was published by UNAM Press in 2018. He has published papers on media and public culture in several academic journals. He has been active in Spoken Word poetry in Windhoek for two decades. He earned his PhD in media studies from Wits University in 2018.
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Katherine Hunter
for “What The Sycamores Saw”
published in Issue 15: July, 2025
Katherine Hunter is a Namibian artist, graphic designer, and writer. She received her undergraduate degree in illustration from the Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography, and her master’s degree in Art Education from Stellenbosch University. Her short stories have appeared in Dark Winter Literary Magazine and the Kalahari Review. Her short story “Eat Or Be Eaten” was published in Now Now, the 2023 Doek Anthology.
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Jeremy Tiboth
for “Poisoned Pawn”
published in Issue 14: December, 2024)
Jeremy Tiboth is a Namibian writer from Rehoboth. He is currently studying Applied Math at the Namibian University of Science and Technology. His work has also appeared in the Kalahari Review.
STATEMENT FROM THE JUDGES
“The three shortlisted entries came from a longlist which already bore testament to the extraordinary creativity, talent, and craft of Namibian short fiction writers. Standing out from such a list of excellence is quite a feat—all three writers should be proud of themselves, as each story draws the reader into its world in its own unique way. Ellis-Mwiya’s ‘Flesh Of The Sun’, Hunter’s ‘What The Sycamores Saw’, and Tiboth’s ‘Poisoned Pawn’ explore the sometimes dark dynamics of interpersonal relationships in Namibia. Possessing sharp twists at their conclusions, all three were written with an acute eye for natural and psychological landscapes that Namibian and international readers can appreciate.” — Sylvia Schlettwein, 2025 Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards Judge
NONFICTION
Filemon Iiyambo
for “Sonic Overload: Auralgraph From Cairo”
published in Issue 15: August, 2025
Filemon Iiyambo is a writer, former newspaper columnist, and social commentator currently working as a hydrogeologist. He has written for the Namibian Sun, and for the New Era Newspaper. He holds BA and BA Honours in English Literature and Applied Linguistics from the Namibia University of Science and Technology. His work was included in Brittle Paper’s Erotic Africa and Isele Magazine. His short story “December” was shortlisted for the 2021 Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards, while “Their Mother’s Words” was shortlisted in 2023. His short story “A Thousand Ungovernable Voices” was published in Now Now: The 2023 Doek Anthology. He was a fellow of the Narrating Namibia, Narrating Africa Doek Emerging Writers Program and a member of the 2022-2023 Doek Collective. In 2023 he guest-edited Lolwe, one of the most influential literary magazines in Africa, becoming the first Namibian to be invited to do so. Also in 2023, his short story “Nandjila” won second prize at the National Literary Festival of Namibia. He is currently working on a novel.
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Perivi Katjivivi
for “I’ll Tell You Why I Was Late For Church Yesterday: Auralgraph From Gobabis, 1965”
published in Issue 14: December, 2024
Perivi Katjavivi is a Namibian filmmaker, researcher, and sound artist. His work has been screened on Netflix and at festivals in Berlinale and Rotterdam. His recent feature film, Under the Hanging Tree, was selected as Namibia’s first ever submission to the Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category. He holds an MA in African Cinema from the University of Cape Town and is a PhD candidate in history at the University of the Western Cape. His research focuses on how colonial sites of memory related to the Ovaherero Genocide influence everyday life in Namibia and how film can be used as a therapeutic tool in unravelling the entanglement with these sites of trauma and contemporary modern life.
STATEMENT FROM THE JUDGES
“This year’s nonfiction shortlist offers a rare glimpse of the literary talent of modern Namibian writers. ‘I Will Tell You Why I Was Late For Church Yesterday’ by Perivi Katjavivi and ‘Sonic Overload’ by Filemon Iiyambo are two stories crafted with inventive flair. The two writers succeed in bringing their stories to life, stimulating the imagination and potentially igniting amplified conversations about issues and themes about history, place, and time that are vital yet often overlooked in the rush of a fast-paced world.” — Samuel Mayinoti, 2025 Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards Judge
POETRY
Jedidja Kakuva
for “In The Shadow Of Reflection”, “Man Enough”, and “When I Wake Up”
published in Issue 15: August, 2025
Jedidja Kakuva is a Namibian data professional and aspiring writer. They are currently studying Mathematics and Physics while developing a financial management platform aimed at supporting small and medium enterprises in Namibia.
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Vekondjisa Nosipho Katusuva
for “Aminus: Pos 11”, “Identity”, and “I Have Not Yet Learned To Swim”
published in Issue 15: August, 2025
Vekondjisa Nosipho Katusuva is a poet and open mic performer, as well as a recent graduate of The University of Science and Technology, with a bachelor’s degree in English and Linguistics. She is currently working on her first poetry collection.
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Johannes Shikongo
for “The Algorithm Of Fading Fathers”, “The Ombindu That Remains Of Us”, and “The Oshikundu That Never Fermented”
published in Issue 15: August, 2025
Johannes Shikongo, an alumnus of the University of Namibia with an honours degree in Biochemistry, deftly blends his writing prowess with a profound compassion for performance poetry. He is a writer, youth leader, medical student, and poet.
STATEMENT FROM THE JUDGES
“The shortlisted poems were chosen for their originality, evocative quality, and rhythm. The poems riff on reminiscences about childhood, grieving places, family and heritage, and the pain of absent fatherhood. They also explore the consequences of war and history, what it means to be a man, and losing contact with one’s culture. This year’s shortlist contains vulnerable, raw, and beautifully written poems that touch on identity, love, paternal trauma, and religion. These personal and universal experiences, written with depth and imagery so vividly haunting, are captivating and thought provoking.” — Ndawedwa Denga Hanghuwo, 2025 Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards Judge
VISUAL ART
Luigi Arnat
for “Solitude”
published in Issue 12: December, 2023
Luigi Arnat is a Namibian photographer and aspiring full-time artist. Using the experience he has acquired from working in multiple jobs in the service industry he has developed an understanding of the human condition and the things that make us all tick. His aim is to find his voice through art and its many mediums to be able to tell the stories only he knows how.
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Natache Sylvia Iilonga
for “Kasino Street”
published in Issue 12: December, 2023
Natache Sylvia Iilonga practises as a registered professional architect and multi-disciplinary creative in the realms of architecture, public space installations, research, and photography. She is from the ever-expanding city of Windhoek, Namibia.
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Omen Keisho
for “Your Wings From The Back”
published in Issue 15: August, 2025
Omen Keisho is a Namibian photographer, illustrator, and writer based in Windhoek. She is currently in her final year of her Bachelor of Clinical Psychology degree at the University of Namibia.
STATEMENT FROM THE JUDGES
“‘Kasino Street’ by Iilonga touches on a profound and essential discussion within Namibian society. The message underpinning this body of work is crucial to awakening the consciousness of slumbering citizenship. Keisho’s work echoes these expressions of rejection in her work titled ‘Your Wings from the Back.’ The striking images of vulnerability in a rugged environment showcased in Keisho’s work are rendered in stark black and white contrasts that are echoed and threaded into Arnat’s ‘Solitude’ which carefully explores loneliness and isolation in contemporary Namibia.” — Michelle Van Wyk, 2025 Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards