Youth makes African heritage resonate March 29, 2026
The Place du Souvenir africain hosted, on Thursday March 26, the second edition of the “Plumes et Voix” competition for high school and middle school students, organized as part of the International Day of La Francophonie and World Storytelling Day. Between oral performances and committed writing, the event recognized young talents from several establishments in the country.
Thursday March 26, the Place du Souvenir africain vibrated to the rhythm of words and voices on the occasion of the second edition of the “Plumes et Voix” competition, an initiative dedicated to high school and college students.
Organized as part of the International Day of La Francophonie and World Storytelling Day, the event brought together students, supervisors and authorities around the same ambition: to celebrate the French language, promote oral tradition and reveal the literary talents of young people.
The candidates all worked on finely crafted texts, addressed to notable figures from Africa and its diaspora, combining literary rigor and historical depth. An approach that is fully in line with the missions of the Place du Souvenir africain, committed to the preservation of memory, the promotion of cultural heritage and the transmission of knowledge to younger generations.
The competition brought together a diversity of establishments. Among the high school students, there were ten competing, including the Birago Diop, Lamine Guèye, Mariama Bâ, Thiaroye, Ibrahima Diop de Yeumbeul, Seydina Limamoulaye, Seydou Nourou Tall, Pikine high schools, as well as the David Diop Mendès School of Excellence and the Saldia school group.
On the college side, eight establishments were involved, including Mariama Bâ, Saldia, Seydou Nourou Tall, Birago Diop, Lamine Guèye and Ibrahima Diop.
Beforehand, on March 11, 2026, the jury, composed of professors Andrée-Marie Diagne, Annie Coly and Abdoulaye Racine Senghor, met to listen to the candidates’ performances before deliberating. Seven establishments out of the eight registered at the college level actually presented three candidates each, in a studious and competitive atmosphere.
At the end of the deliberations, the winners were revealed. In the middle school category, first prize went to Fatou Fall from Cem David Diop Mendès, praised for the finesse of her writing and the mastery of her diction.
Dialogue with emblematic figures
She is followed by Mouhamed Bachir Diagne from Cem El Hadji Ibrahima Diop, second, and Ramatoulaye Wane from Cem Lamine Guèye, third.
Among the high school students, Aïcha Dème from the Thierno Saïdou Nourou Tall high school stood out by winning first prize thanks to a letter addressed to Léon-Gontran Damas, marked by great literary maturity.
Second place went to Fatoumata Faty from Thiaroye high school, author of a letter to Lamine Guèye, while Babacar Yero Fall from the Saldia school group completed the podium with a text dedicated to Mariama Bâ.
Beyond the prize list, the second edition of the “Plumes et Voix” competition for high school and middle school students was an opportunity to reaffirm the fundamental role of culture in the training of young people.
Ngakhane Gning, administrator of the Place of African Remembrance, insisted on the symbolic significance of the initiative. According to her, “Plumes et Voix” is part of a desire to celebrate both the French language as a space for dialogue and storytelling as a vector for transmitting values, history and identity.
In the same vein, the Secretary of State for Culture, Creative Industries and Historical Heritage, Bakary Sarr, put into perspective the triple dimension of the meeting: a language, a tradition and a youth.
Emphasizing the theme of this edition, “Generation Peace: contributions of youth for a more peaceful world”, he recalled that the Francophonie goes beyond the simple linguistic framework to become a space for sharing, cooperation and collective construction.
By Adama NDIAYE
