Zimbabwean writer Simbarashe Steyn Kundizeza has won the 2026 Caine Prize for African Writing, according to an announcement published on the Caine Prize website.

Mr Kundizeza beat four other writers shortlisted for the prize, including Nigerian writer Akinwande Remilekun Jordan, who was the only Nigerian on this year’s shortlist.

Mr Jordan was the only Nigerian on this year’s shortlist, with his short story, So Long It’s Starting To Look Like Eternity, competing with stories from Kenya, Cameroon, Egypt and Zimbabwe. The story was published by Naira Books in the anthology A House That’s Not A Home.

The judging panel was chaired by Nigerian broadcaster and journalist Bola Mosuro, who led a five-member panel that selected Mr Kundizeza as the winner.

The Zimbabwean author won the £10,000 prize for his short story, The Blue Fighter, which was published by The Shallow Tales Review.

The win makes Mr Kundizeza the third Zimbabwean to win the main Caine Prize, after Brian Chikwava won in 2004 and NoViolet Bulawayo won in 2011. Nigeria has had seven winners since 2001, including Helon Habila, Segun Afolabi, E.C. Osundu, Rotimi Babatunde, Tope Folarin, Lesley Nneka Arimah and Irenosen

Mr Kundizeza was one of five writers shortlisted for this year’s prize.

The other shortlisted writers were:

Gladwell Pamba of Kenya, The Last Shop

Melara Mvogdobo of Cameroon, Dieu Merci!

Akinwande Jordan of Nigeria, So Long Now It’s Starting To Look Like Eternity

Yasmine Zohdi of Egypt, The Absence of Stains

Ms Mosuro described the story as “gripping, moving and beautifully crafted,” saying Mr Kundizeza captures “the complexities of family, denial and devotion with remarkable emotional power.” She added that the story is told in a “deceptively simple manner” but has “a profound and lasting impact.”