2026 Winner

“Winning the Caine Prize means a great deal to me. I’ve been writing for several years, often without knowing where the work would take me, just fitting it around everything else in my life. To have a story drawn from my own experiences recognised at this level makes all those everyday compromises feel worthwhile. Most of all, it gives me a little more belief that I can keep making room for this life as a writer.”

Simbarashe Kundizeza (Zimbabwe)

Winner of the 2026 Caine Prize for African Writing

Zimbabwean Writer Simbarashe Steyn Kundizeza Wins the 2026 Caine Prize for African Writing

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Zimbabwean Writer Simbarashe Steyn Kundizeza Wins the 2026 Caine Prize for African Writing *

The short story follows Tinashe, a young boy whose family falls into financial hardship after his father leaves his profession to pursue his passion for building fish tanks. As money becomes increasingly scarce, Tinashe's mother is forced to choose between her family’s survival and her husband’s dream. A powerful story that explores fatherhood, ambition, and financial hardship while examining the complicated ways in which family circumstances can shape the people within them.

Read 'The Blue Fighter'