The Caine Prize for African Writing has announced that director Lizzy Attree is leaving the organisation.

Attree has served as director of the Caine Prize as a part-time consultant for the past seven years.

The Caine Prize board of trustees released a statement paying tribute to the work Attree did throughout her tenure, and wishing her well with her other projects, which include the Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature.

‘The board is grateful for Lizzy’s commitment and contributions to the continued growth of the Caine Prize, which is recognised as a leading literary award,’ the statement reads. ‘An announcement regarding the future administration of the prize will follow in due course.’

President of the Caine Prize, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, added her ‘gratitude for and warm appreciation of Dr Attree’s unique achievements for the prize’.

Attree tells The JRB she will be taking some time to explore new career options and continue her research.

‘I hope to continue to work with African writers with the same energy and passion I brought to the Caine Prize,’ she says, ‘and to return to some long-neglected research on Koos Prinsloo, among other writers.’

The Caine Prize, which was launched in 2000, is awarded annually to an African writer of a short story published in English. Last year’s prize went to Sudanese writer Bushra al-Fadil, for his story ‘The Story of the Girl Whose Birds Flew Away’. 

The judges for this year’s award, including The JRB Contributing Editor Henrietta Rose-Innes, were recently announced. The panel will meet in April 2018 to decide on the shortlist, and the winner will be announced on Monday, 2 July 2018 in London.