Kinshasa, September 30th, 2026 (CPA).- The 2026 Senghor Prize for the best first Francophone and Francophile novel has been awarded to the writer Jocelyn Danga, from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), for his novel ‘Né sur des pissenlits’, the jury has announced on Wednesday in a Facebook post.
“The jury of the 2026 Senghor Prize for the Best First Francophone and Francophile Novel congratulates Jocelyn Danga, winner of the 2026 Senghor Prize, for his first novel *Né sur des pissenlits*, published by Editions Elyzad,” it is read. According to the jury, created in 2006 to mark the centenary of Leopold Sedar Senghor’s birth, the Senghor Prize recognises a first novel written in French. Organised by the association ‘La Plume noire’, this prize aims to encourage new writers to make the French language a shared space for creativity and dialogue between cultures.
Jocelyn Danga succeeds Catherine Perreault, awarded in 2025 for her novel ‘L’Elu’, published by Editions du Quartz and later by Philippe Rey. Published in January 2026 by Editions Elyzad in Tunisia, ‘Né sur des pissenlits’ is 240 pages long. The novel centres on Muntu, a young philosophy lecturer living in precarious circumstances, without sufficient means to start a family or fulfil his aspirations, who seizes the opportunity of a trip to France to try to settle there. Born in the early 1990s, Danga is also the author of around ten plays and short stories. In July 2024, a reading of his play ‘Ne t’étonne pas si ma lettre sent le sel’ has been presented at the Avignon Festival.