Chad as a literary territory: Interview with francophone novelist Nétonon Noël Ndjékéry

Reported by Filip Noubel. Originally published by Global Voices on 26 March 2024. This is an archived report; dates and circumstances refer to its original publication.

A pivot country located in the Sahel between North Africa and Central Africa, Chad is rarely discussed in the media as a literary territory. To remedy this gap, Global Voices interviewed the author Nétonon Noël Ndjékéry, one of the most visible representatives of French-speaking Chadian literature.

Born in Moundou in southern Chad, Ndjékéry lives in Switzerland where he has devoted himself entirely to writing since April 2021?. To this day, he has published nine books, the two last being “ Il n’y a pas d’arc-en-ciel au Paradis ” (There is No Rainbow in Paradise), and “ L’Angle mort du rêve ” (The Dream's Blind Spot).

Filip Noubel (FN): Can you describe the linguistic landscape of Chad?

Nétonon Noël Ndjékéry (NNN): In Chad there are 144 local languages, plus two official languages, French and classical Arabic, allocated to administration and education. French was introduced there in 1900 with Western colonization. As for classical Arabic, it was imposed by law in 1978 at a time when this language had very few indigenous speakers.

Certainly, a vehicular language called Tourkou or “Chadian Arabic” has been used for a long time in this region in the heart of Africa. And while this idiom partially shares its structure and vocabulary with classical Arabic, it dissociates itself drastically on a semantic level due to its crossbreeding with local dialects. This suggests that the establishment of classical Arabic as an official language stemmed from a political desire to anchor the country to the Arab Muslim world.

However, although the Chadian government does nothing to promote local languages, Kanembu , Mundang and Ngambay , remain alive. It is nevertheless regrettable that to my knowledge they have not yet produced any literature other than translations of the Bible.

In the meantime, to be heard by Chadian public authorities, one must continue to use one or the other of the two imported languages: French and classical Arabic.

FN: How did you go from mathematics to literature?

NNN : My literary vocation started very early. A taste for storytelling was instilled in me from the cradle by my mother, and later then by the “gosstar,” the Chadian griots . Then, as soon as I learned to read and write in French, I became a public writer, because many people were illiterate in Chad at the time. However, for them to communicate with their loved ones, or with a national administration doped with the French language and Jacobin rigidity, they needed the skills of a French-speaking scholar.

So I helped them out when summoned on call, for a handful of peanuts or small change. But above all, it allowed me to share the emotions of my clients, and above all, to translate their joys or their sorrows into words. Thus, combined with the narration techniques that I gleaned from the griots, the management of other people's private or official correspondence turned out to be for me the best writing workshop. The more I devoted myself to it, the more my passion for writing asserted itself. One thing led to another, as a teenager I began to write poems, then short stories. This is how I got into literature.

However, I later had to study mathematics, otherwise I would not have been able to benefit from a scholarship from the Chadian state. I then specialized in computer science, just to earn my bread during the day, and enjoy the pleasure of writing at night. As the tree roots itself in a fixed place to better pollinate space and set out to conquer the sky, I try to cast my work in the mold of this maxim which, in my opinion, best defines art in general: Starting from a local anchor to aim for the universal. Indeed, whatever continent I place a story on, my raw material remains the human condition. It is the eternal human that I sing and that I hear vibrate. So, beyond any framework, my work aims first of all to bring to all continents my sub-Saharan way of looking, feeling and speaking about the world.

FN: How do you experience life in Switzerland in another culture and your long distance relationship with Chad? In 2017, you received the Grand National Literary Prize in Chad: how are you perceived in Chad as a writer?

NNN: I have now lived longer in Europe than on my native continent. However, I would not have been able to write as much if I had not been exiled. Because life in Africa can only be conceived in community. And any activity, such as reading or writing, the exercise of which requires the individual to isolate himself, is generally poorly accepted. It exposes those who engage in it to marginalization.

Therefore, I am indebted to Switzerland for offering me this haven of peace and freedom from which the vicissitudes of my country of origin reach me magnified by contrast. This situation of being torn apart between two antipodes is one of the factors which allows in me the tension necessary for creation.

Of course I stay in Chad as often as possible. But I still have scruples about living far from my homeland, although this distance paradoxically helps me to better understand Chadian realities. Indeed, having your nose glued to a fresco does not allow you to appreciate all the details. You have to take a step back to see the big picture. And it is precisely this precious panorama that exile provides me with.

In 2021, at the National Library of Chad in N’Djamena, there wasn't a single book by me, only one of my life-size photos. This anecdote pretty much sums up how my compatriots perceive me. They know my name from the media, but very few read me. Imagine that a novel imported from Europe sells locally at a price equivalent to one sixth of the average local salary. At this price, there is no need for censorship. Reading therefore only has a utilitarian meaning for pupils and students who, once their diploma is in hand, prefer to read their destiny over a good glass of alcohol.

That said, the fact that National Literary Grand Prize awarded me delighted me all the more, as I was not expecting it. I take this recognition as a magnificent bet on the future insofar as it offers my work as a source of inspiration for Chadian youth.

FN: Where can one read more about Chadian literature?

NNN: It seems that there is a Chadian literature in classical Arabic. But, not being an Arabic speaker, I don’t know it. On the other hand, I am much more familiar with French-speaking Chadian literature, one of the youngest in sub-Saharan Africa. A collection of stories symbolically marking its birth in Chad under the stars was published only in 1962. Since then, many other books have appeared, but, the quality is not always there. However, a few writers with internationally recognized talents allow Chad to appear on the world literary map. The most prominent today are the poets Nimrod Bena and Nocky Djedanoum , the playwright Koulsy Lamko and the world-renowned filmmaker-novelist Mahamat-Saleh Haroun. To find out more, I recommend consulting the pages dedicated to them on social networks or on the sites of their respective publishers.

The success of established authors maintains a rich breeding ground of talent which ultimately promises great literary harvests… As long as the government in place provides inputs and framework that are conducive to its development! In Chad, two large annual masses strive to punctuate literary life. First there is the International Festival Le Souffle de l’Harmattan [The Blow of the Harmattan Wind] which remains the only book fair whose impact extends beyond national borders. Finally, since 2017, November has been declared “ book and reading month .” It is the only major event during which the Chadian state celebrates writing and writers. It was on this occasion that, for example, the National Literary Prize was awarded, of which I was the first recipient.

For more, read: For African literary criticism: Interview with the founder of francophone ‘African literary chronicles’

Image credit

Cover context image: NNN by Joao Cardoso - 2019. This archival or illustrative image is not presented as a photograph of the reported event. Creator: Netononnoel. Original image and full attribution. License: CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and compressed for web display; the image retains its stated license.

Publication credits

Written (Français) by Filip Noubel Translated (English) by Filip Noubel. Original report published by Global Voices. Republished under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0. Adapted for Gistmax: formatting simplified; duplicate original-language quotations and embedded media omitted; cover photograph replaced. This republication does not imply endorsement of Gistmax by the author or publisher.