Egyptian writer Salwa Bakr becomes the first laureate of the BRICS Literature Award

On 30 November 2025, the name of the first laureate of the BRICS Literature Award was announced in Khabarovsk. Following the vote of the international jury, the award went to Egyptian writer Salwa Bakr — one of the leading figures in contemporary Arabic prose, the author of seven short-story collections, seven novels and a play, whose works have been translated into numerous European languages.

The official ceremony announcing the winner was held at the Khabarovsk City Palace of Culture as part of the BRICS Countries Arts Festival, which took place in Khabarovsk from 26 to 30 November and became its key event. The small hall of the Palace brought together representatives of the Khabarovsk Territory administration, diplomats, writers, publishers and public figures from BRICS countries and partner states. The award ceremony for the winner will take place in the near future — the date and venue will be announced later. The winner will receive a cash prize of 1 million rubles.

The official ceremony announcing the winner was held at the Khabarovsk City Palace of Culture as part of the BRICS Countries Arts Festival, which took place in Khabarovsk from 26 to 30 November and for which it became the key event. The Small Hall of the Palace brought together representatives of the Khabarovsk Territory administration, diplomats, writers, publishers and public figures from BRICS countries and partner states. The presentation of the award to Salwa Bakr will take place in the near future, with the date and venue to be announced separately. The winner will receive a cash prize of 1 million rubles.

Significance of the award and the victory

Addressing the participants, President of the Russian Book Union, Chairman of the Association of Lawyers of Russia and member of the Award Board of Directors from Russia, Sergey Stepashin, emphasized the historic nature of the event and the role of BRICS in the global cultural agenda:

“Today we are witnessing a truly historic moment. We are not merely announcing a winner — we are laying the cornerstone for a shared cultural space for our countries. This award is a powerful signal to the world that the literature of the BRICS countries is an integral and vibrant part of global culture.

I wholeheartedly congratulate the first winner of the BRICS Literature Award — the talented Egyptian writer Salwa Bakr. This victory is a recognition of her outstanding talent and proof that BRICS literature is making itself heard with new, strong voices. Salwa Bakr has become a trailblazer whose work sets a high standard for future laureates.

I hope this victory will mark the beginning of a long and glorious history of literary recognition — not only within the BRICS framework, but worldwide. I am confident that the BRICS Literature Award will take its rightful place among leading international distinctions and become a beacon pointing the way to the true gems of world literature”.

Her compatriot, Egyptian writer and member of the Egyptian Parliament Doha Mustafa Assi, who took part in the ceremony online and is one of the founders of the Award as well as a member of the Award’s Board of Directors from Egypt, congratulated her:

“The first BRICS Literature Award — and this year Egypt is the winner. For us, this is a great joy and very important news. Salwa Bakr is a truly special, unconventional Egyptian writer. She has her own distinctive voice, unlike anyone else’s. We have always felt this while reading her books, and we are very pleased that this is now recognized at such a level.

I believe this is only the beginning: the first year of the award, the first victory for Egypt, the first BRICS distinction for Salwa Bakr. She has won — and I am sincerely happy”.

International perspective and Khabarovsk’s role

Kumar Karan, Vice-Consul of the Consulate General of the Republic of India in Vladivostok, emphasized the importance of Khabarovsk Krai as a venue for the award and the BRICS forum:

“Today’s ceremony in Khabarovsk went excellently. The choice of Khabarovsk Krai as the venue for the finals of the BRICS Literary Award underlines its special role as Russia’s Far Eastern gateway and an important cultural bridge between the BRICS countries. Holding the first award ceremony here is more than symbolic: the region has historically been linked to intercultural dialogue and is now becoming one of the key platforms for humanitarian cooperation among the countries of the global majority.

The BRICS Award plays an important role in strengthening intercultural dialogue between our countries. Its mission is to support contemporary literary voices that promote traditional and spiritual values, to encourage translations, cross-cultural publishing, and those works that reflect the shared heritage and diversity of the peoples of BRICS.

We are looking to the future with great attention. The third BRICS ‘Traditional Values’ forum will be held in India, and it is there that the longlist for the 2026 BRICS Literature Award will be presented. For us, this is not just an honor, but also an opportunity to further deepen cultural cooperation, which serves as a foundation for strengthening political, economic and human ties between the countries of the association”.

Special Prize and Comments from Indonesia

The Special Prize “For Innovation in Literature” was awarded to Indonesian writer Denny JA. This distinction was conferred on him for his contribution to the emergence and development of the poetic essay genre, which combines lyrical and narrative elements with factual material in a single work.

The National Coordinator of the BRICS Literature Network in Indonesia, Sastri Bakry, expressed her pride in the fact that, in the first season of the award, both Egypt and Indonesia were recognized:

“I am very proud of the Egyptian writer Salwa Bakr, who always speaks on behalf of women and tirelessly fights for gender equality through her texts. I am also proud that Denny received the ‘Special Prize for Innovation in Literature’. Denny truly deserves it and, without even realizing it, he has already raised Indonesia’s profile in the eyes of the whole world”.

BRICS Literature Award: A New Alternative to the Nobel Prize in Literature

Speaking at the ceremony, Dmitry Kuznetsov, member of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, member of the Committee on International Affairs and Head of the Award Secretariat, outlined the mission and principles of the new distinction:

“It is hard not to disagree with Vladimir Medinsky, Mikhail Razvozhayev and Zakhar Prilepin that the modern Nobel Prize in Literature often shows signs of politicization and departs from the true criteria of art. Not only our country, but the development of human culture as a whole, needs a new authoritative international award that promotes the values of the global majority — mutual respect, humanism and justice — and is capable of duly recognizing the depth, talent and contribution of writers to world culture. We — the team of Zakhar Prilepin and our like‑minded colleagues from the Russian Book Union, the Writers’ Union of Russia and other countries — have created such an institution of recognition in the form of the BRICS Literature Award.

I am deeply convinced that this should not be an exclusively Russian award, but the result of the collective work of literary communities from the countries of the global majority. On the initiative of the Secretary of the Chinese Writers’ Association, Comrade Hu Bangsheng, we have established the Association of Writers’ Unions and Literary Organizations — the BRICS Literature Network — which is to assume this shared responsibility”.

Kuznetsov congratulated Salwa Bakr on her victory and noted that he had closely followed the voting of the national juries: the Russian nominee, Alexei Varlamov, was among the frontrunners and received votes, in particular, from India and the UAE, but in the end the decisive votes came from other countries.

Speaking about the future of the award, he added that the main intrigue of the next season is linked to the decisions of the BRICS Literature Network regarding the further rules of the Award: “We are only at the beginning of an enormous undertaking, but we are confident that we will succeed”.

Results of the first season of the BRICS Literature Award

Vadim Teryokhin, Co-Chair of the Writers’ Association of the BRICS Literature Network, summed up the results of the first season and outlined the prospects for the network’s development:

“The first season of the BRICS Literature Award has come to an end. We warmly congratulate the laureate from Egypt, Salwa Bakr, on her victory. It is a great honor for us to be the pioneers of such a prestigious international distinction, which offers writers a chance to secure a place in the history of world literature.

Over the past year, we have travelled a long creative road together. There were many debates and discussions. Each BRICS country set out its vision for the development of the BRICS Literature Network and for the global literary process. Many friendly states and partner countries expressed their wish to join us and take an active part in the next season.

We do not see our organization as a closed structure intended only for BRICS countries. We hope that in the future all writers who share our aesthetic and moral‑spiritual values will be able to take part in our work. It is already clear that the BRICS Literature Network has great potential and will contribute to the mutual enrichment of national literatures and to the unity of peoples through the written word”.

About the BRICS Literature Award and the selection procedure

The BRICS Literature Award is a new international distinction established in November 2024 at the BRICS forum “Traditional Values”. The award supports contemporary authors whose works reflect the cultural and spiritual values of the peoples of the BRICS countries and promotes the translation and publication of literature in the languages of the participating states and the countries of the global majority.

To organize the BRICS Literature Award, a directorate was set up in each country and a national jury was formed to nominate candidates who have made a significant contribution to the development of literature. The longlist was published in Brazil. After a month of voting, 10 finalists remained — one from each country; the shortlist was presented in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The shortlist included Brazilian writer Ana Maria Gonçalves; Indian writer and poet Sonu Saini; Chinese writer, columnist and blogger Ma Boyong; Emirati writer, journalist and cultural researcher Reem Al Kamali; Ethiopian writer, politician and public figure Abere Adamu; South African writer and poet Ntabiseng JahRose Jafta; Indonesian writer Denny JA; Russian writer and publicist Alexei Varlamov; and Iranian writer and poet Mansour Alimoradi. Egypt was represented by writer Salwa Bakr.

About the laureate

Salwa Bakr (born 1949, Cairo) is a renowned Egyptian writer, novelist and critic. She graduated from Ain Shams University, worked as a film and theatre critic for leading Arab media outlets, and taught at the American University in Cairo.

Her works — including the novels The Golden Chariot and The Man from Bashmour, the latter included in the list of the 100 best Arabic novels — focus on the destinies of the deprived and marginalized, as well as on the situation of women in Egyptian society.

Salwa Bakr is a recipient of the Deutsche Welle literary prize and a member of the Supreme Council for Culture of Egypt and the Egyptian Writers’ Union. Her victory in the inaugural BRICS Literature Award further cements her status as one of the significant voices in contemporary world literature.