National Arts Council’s assistant director, Audrey Charamba, said the entries closed on November 30 and judging was underway. Only 400 entries have been received this year, down from 464 last year. Charamba said everything was going according to plan and promised an improved event.
“We always believe our standards improve every year and that is no exception to the forthcoming awards. We promise an event that is better than the previous year’s, in our quest to uplift the value of arts in the country,” she said.
This year’s edition will, for the first the first time, be held outside Harare, with Bulawayo hosting the 12th edition. NACZ Director Elvas Mari said lack of funding had been hampering moves to take the awards out of the capital.