SAARC Literary Award

The SAARC Literary Award is an annual award conferred by the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to writers from its member states. It aims to promote creativity and literature in the South Asian region.

History

The Award was instituted in 2001 at the 11th SAARC Summit held in Kathmandu, Nepal. The proposal to launch such an award was initially made by India to promote South Asian writers and literature. The award carries a plaque, citation and a cash prize of $5,000 USD.

Award Categories

The SAARC Literary Award is conferred in three categories:

• Poetry
• Fiction
• Creative Non-Fiction/Essays

The nomination for the award is made by member states in alphabetical order. The recipient in each category is selected every year by a designated jury of literary experts appointed by the SAARC Secretariat.

Recipients

Over the years, SAARC Literary Award recipients have included eminent personalities as follows:

The SAARC Literary Award highlights the shared civilizational heritage of South Asian countries and builds closer ties through the threads of literature and language. As such, it remains an important instrument in advancing SAARC’s objectives at the people-to-people level.