All is set for the 6th Providus Bank World Poetry Day celebration, which will be held on Friday, March 21, in Lagos.
As declared by UNESCO in 1999, March 21 is World Poetry Day (WPD), which is dedicated to celebrating the humanities through poetry and especially to “give fresh recognition and impetus to national, regional, and international poetry movements.”
The celebration highlights “reading, performing, writing, publishing, and teaching of poetry throughout the world.”
Since 2020, the Providus Bank, under its Corporate Social Responsibility initiative, has been hosting the celebration of the Day curated by Jahman Anikulapo for the Culture Advocates Caucus (CAC) under the encouragement of the Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka.
Officially titled, “ProvidusBank World Poetry Day Café: An Evening with Wole Soyinka”, the past editions have explored themes relating to humanity’s existential concerns, among them preservation of the environment, education, youth and female empowerment, migration and socio-cultural pluralism.
According to the organisers, the celebration of the 2025 edition of the day, which is the 6th in the series, is dedicated to commemorating the beginning of the United Nations Second Decade of African Descendants (2025 – 2034), hence the theme: “Sand Dune And Ocean Bed: The Template Of Dispersal.”
The theme is also in the context of the ongoing United Nations Anniversary for Enslaved People and Reparatory Justice.
The 2025 edition will be held Friday, March 21, at the Terra Kulture Arena, Tiamiyu Savage Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.
The event is to be graced by diverse guests including Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, Republic of Cuba’s Minister of Culture, Alpidio Alonso Grau, eminent members of the literary community, patrons of the arts, captains of industries, as well as invited members of the public, will feature among other items, poetry reading, performances, workshops, and reception for guests.
Significantly, the edition will host a delegation of poets and a 15-piece musical orchestra from the Republic of Cuba, which has been designated the “Special Guest Nation.”
The invitation of the Republic of Cuba as “Special Guest Nation” for the 2025 edition, as advised by Professor Soyinka, the patron of the project, “is singularly apt at a time of the 30th Anniversary of UNESCO’s Programme, ‘The Routes of Enslaved Peoples: Resistance, Liberty and Heritage.’ That conference will be held on March 25, 2025, in the USA.”
Comprising a 15-man team accompanied by some senior government officials, led by the Republic’s Minister of Culture, Hon. Alpidio Alonso Grau, the Cuban Delegation will have their first presentation in Lagos on March 21, which is the main day of the World Poetry Day.
“However, in line with the expressed desire of the visitors to have an immersive experience of aspects of culture and heritage of Yoruba people, Professor Soyinka has advised that the 15-man troupe members have a second presentation in Abeokuta, Ogun State on March 23rd.
“They will also tour cultural and heritage sites, including the Olumo Tourism sites and the Adiire market in Itoku, among others. They will be accompanied by a few other officials from the embassy, including chaperons from Providus Bank and the Culture Advocates Caucus.”
Five Nigerian poets have been selected to headline the edition, to be joined by four poets from Cuba.
On the rationale for choice, the curator, Anikulapo, said: “Since the Cuban guests are mainly presenting contents rooted in their performance culture and heritage, the choice of the local poets has been carefully made such that the guests would have variety of Nigerian cultural contents, even as they stay faithful to the theme of the festival.”
He added: “The five recommended Nigerian poets have thus been chosen based on their varied styles of presentation that would expose the visitors and the guests to a rich taste of poetry delivery/performance techniques in Nigeria.”
The selected poets are: Yusuf Àlàbí Balógun (Àrẹ̀mọ Gemini), a multifaceted artist – poet, storyteller, TEDx speaker, art specialist, with a core focus in Yorùbá arts and culture; Evelyn Osagie, a creative writer with an interest in poetry, performance and photography, with over two decades composing and performing poetry/spoken word on stage; Kafayat Quadri, (Kaffe of Life), a multidisciplinary artist, singer-songwriter, guitarist, and poet whose work seamlessly weaves music and poetry into a profound acoustic and spoken-word experience; Tijani Usman (Tijaywebster), spoken word poet and multidisciplinary artist, renowned for his deep, lyrical performance style with infusion of raps and dancehall contents; and Chinelo Nwora, a passionate writer, poet, and content creator who has authored over 50 poems, which she shares with the public through various online platforms.
The Special Guest Artiste, Wole Alade, is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, jazz music arranger and performer who is committed to being highly artistic and distinctive and unique. Alade is a world-acclaimed music maestro who has produced seasoned pieces of music in the genres of African, African American and contemporary music.
