Decolonising Minds, Building Bridges: The Ngũgĩ-Chakava Partnership

By Francis B. Nyamnjoh, University of Cape Town*

The remarkable, decades-long partnership between Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (1938-2025), East Africa’s leading novelist and advocate for linguistic decolonisation, and Henry Chakava (1946-2024), “the father of Kenyan publishing”, transcended a mere business arrangement. It evolved into a shared ideological struggle against colonial legacies and repressive governments, championing African voices and indigenous language publishing. Their intertwined lives and collaborative efforts profoundly shaped African literature published on the continent and serve as a powerful embodiment of “Incompleteness and Conviviality” as a framework for an inclusive humanity. Notably, Chakava and Ngũgĩ, deeply connected throughout their careers, passed away one year apart from each other.

Incompleteness and Conviviality: A Guiding Framework

Incompleteness is not a flaw, but a fundamental aspect of human existence that drives connection , highlighting the need for humility and an acknowledgment of our inherent limitations. No person, group, or society is entirely self-sufficient or possesses absolute knowledge. Conviviality is the active embrace of this incompleteness, encouraging connection and collaboration not to achieve a state of “completeness,” but to become “more efficacious in their relationships and sociality”. This framework champions interdependence and fosters an openness to diverse perspectives. The relation between Chakava and Ngũgĩ vividly illustrates these principles, demonstrating how acknowledging inherent limitations can foster powerful, mutually beneficial collaborations.

Foundations of a Partnership: Early Influences and Shared Vision

The genesis of their relationship lies in post-independence Kenya, a period marked by both nationalistic aspirations and the lingering shadows of colonial influence. Chakava, rapidly ascending to Managing Director at Heinemann Educational Books (HEB) by 1976, began steering the company towards local production and indigenous language books, a significant departure from Western-influenced content. Concurrently, Ngũgĩ was emerging as a leading literary voice during the 1960s, with early English works like Weep Not, Child (1964) addressing the struggle for Kenyan independence. He also challenged the Eurocentric curriculum at the University of Nairobi, advocating for African literature to be central to study. Their professional relationship commenced early, with Chakava involved in publishing Ngũgĩ’s works at Heinemann Educational Books. This initial, relatively stable platform, influenced by Heinemann’s Chairman Alan Hill, allowed for African-centric ideas to germinate and provided a crucial base for their later, more radical actions.

The Crucible of Repression: Challenging Legacies and Promoting Indigenous Voices

The mid-1970s marked a pivotal shift, transforming their relationship into a courageous alliance against state repression and for the radical decolonisation of African literature. In 1977, Ngũgĩ co-authored and produced Ngaahika Ndeenda (I Will Marry When I Want) in Gikuyu, a play that critically examined corruption and directly led to his detention without trial for a year. While imprisoned, Ngũgĩ made a “life-altering decision” to write exclusively in Gikuyu, famously penning Caitaani Mutharabaini (Devil on the Cross), the first modern novel written in Gikuyu, on toilet paper. This linguistic shift was a profound act of decolonisation, aimed at reconnecting with cultural roots, reaching a wider Kenyan audience, and asserting language as a fundamental carrier of culture. His seminal work, Decolonising the Mind (1986), further articulated his stance, arguing for African-language literature as the “only authentic voice for Africans”.

During this tumultuous period, Henry Chakava demonstrated extraordinary courage, risking his life to publish Ngũgĩ’s controversial works, including Decolonising the Mind, and crucially, facilitating the publication of Gikuyu translations. Chakava’s willingness to publish books with a “critical stance on local governments” and in “local languages,” seen by authorities as “state-subversive,” exposed him to significant personal and professional risks, including repeated threats. These decisions were inherently political acts of cultural and political resistance, demonstrating ideological alignment with Ngũgĩ’s mission.

A further testament to Chakava’s vision was the “indigenisation” of Heinemann into East African Educational Publishers (EAEP) in 1992, making it a “wholly Kenyan-owned company” and the “foremost African-owned publishing entity on the continent and globally”. This move was a direct response to the need for “indigenous publishing” and “publishing for the cultural liberation of the continent”. Chakava also founded crucial pan-African initiatives like the African Publishers Network (APNET), the African Publishing Institute (API), and the African Books Collective (ABC) to strengthen African publishing and distribution globally.

Ngũgĩ’s radical intellectual shift and his articulation of Decolonising the Mind relied heavily on Chakava’s willingness and ability to publish them, often against significant odds. Conversely, Chakava’s visionary commitment to indigenous publishing found its most potent expression in championing a writer like Ngũgĩ, who was pushing the boundaries of language and political critique. This reciprocal relationship highlights that transformative intellectual movements require practical champions and institutional support to move from abstract ideas to widespread impact. It is arguable that Chakava was indispensable to Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o becoming the advocate and practitioner of African language literature and orality that he did. They “made each other” by embracing their mutual needs, leveraging their respective strengths, and aligning their ideological commitments.

Conviviality in Practice: Translation and Global Engagement

Ngũgĩ’s understanding of incompleteness and conviviality is further evident in his willingness to have his novels translated into English and other colonial languages, despite his renowned advocacy for African language publishing and his initial publication of later works in Gikuyu. He personally translated his Gikuyu works, such as Caitaani Mutharabaini and Murogi wa Kagogo into English (Devil on the Cross and Wizard of the Crow), and Matigari was translated from Gikuyu by Wangui wa Goro. Henry Chakava also played a role in facilitating the translation of major titles from the Heinemann African Writers Series into Kiswahili, and some from Kiswahili into English, thus expanding accessibility. This approach suggests that Ngũgĩ’s “decolonisation of the mind” leaned less towards radical rupture and more towards conviviality and repair. By embracing translation, Ngũgĩ acknowledged the “incompleteness” of any single linguistic sphere, recognising that his message of decolonisation could achieve greater “potency” by reaching diverse audiences through multiple languages. This act of translation serves as a quintessential example of conviviality: a “reaching out” and an “encounter” that fosters dialogue and engagement across linguistic and cultural boundaries rather than promoting coercive conversion. It demonstrates a rejection of rigid dualisms and an openness to various forms of being, adaptable to context and necessity.

Ngũgĩ’s strategy was not to isolate African languages or create an insular literary tradition; instead, it aimed to assert their centrality while actively participating in the interconnected global landscape. This nuanced position emphasises a vision of decolonisation that seeks to rebalance power and cultivate mutual respect, rather than simply reversing historical exclusions. It advocates for a more equitable and convivial global literary space, where African voices can “move the centre” of world literature by enriching the global literary landscape through their unique contributions and active engagement, rather than by severing existing ties. This was deeply rooted in his character, as James Ogude remarked: “As a person, Ngugi was profoundly warm and down-to-earth, and always carried himself around with a deep sense of humility and ease, not to mention his infectious laughter and humour. He was simply ordinary – a man of the people”. As I’ve argued, incompleteness isn’t a weakness; it’s a powerful source of learning, growth, connection, and humility.

Enduring Legacy: A Blueprint for Cultural Liberation

The lives and work of Henry Chakava and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o represent an unparalleled chapter in the history of African literature and publishing. Their relationship, characterised by mutual respect, shared ideological commitment, and courageous defiance, profoundly reshaped the literary landscape of Kenya and the broader African continent. Their individual incompleteness – the visionary writer needing a platform for his radical ideas, the pioneering publisher needing powerful narratives to fulfil his mission – converged to form a profoundly convivial partnership. This enabled them to navigate formidable state repression, challenge entrenched colonial legacies, and champion the voices of Africans, particularly through the vital medium of indigenous languages.

Their distinctive contributions – Chakava as the pragmatic architect of an indigenous publishing infrastructure and a pan-African network, and Ngũgĩ as the intellectual vanguard of linguistic decolonisation and grassroots cultural engagement – have left an enduring legacy. They not only brought African stories to the world but, crucially, empowered Africans to tell their own stories, in their own languages, on their own terms. Their partnership stands as a powerful testament to collaboration between a visionary writer and a courageous publisher in the face of political adversity and economic challenges. For future generations, their story offers a compelling blueprint for fostering cultural identity, promoting free expression, and building resilient literary ecosystems through incompleteness and conviviality, demonstrating that the future of African literature is, indeed, a convivial one.

* Francis B. Nyamnjoh is a Professor of Social Anthropology at the University of Cape Town.