Adjudication process rigorous and transparent, says NAMA amid concerns by stakeholders

The organizers of the National Arts Merit Awards (NAMA) state that the adjudication process is rigorous, transparent, and designed to ensure that the best artistic works are recognized and rewarded.

The 2025 NAMAs are scheduled for the 1st of March.

During a media briefing in Harare on Wednesday, National Arts Council of Zimbabwe Executive Director, Napoleon Nyanhi, defended the adjudication process in response to concerns raised by various stakeholders.

“A lot of assumptions have been made on how the NAMA nominees and winners are selected,” he said.

“The adjudication process is rigorous and transparent, and the process is designed to ensure that the best artistic works are recognised and rewarded.

“The process begins with entry and submission, but this time around, we mentioned that submissions are open the whole year. Even now, you can come and submit.

“For the next NAMA, 2026, we are adjudicating works, so that means now some people are already eligible to submit. All year you can submit until the 30th of November. Submissions are done either by the artists themselves or by our industry monitors, it then goes into adjudication,” he said.

The National Arts Council of Zimbabwe Executive Director further explained the processes they undergo before the awards ceremony.

“Adjudication is a closed, top-secret process that happens with adjudicators that we do not divulge until the day of NAMA,” he said.

“And then, it can be put again to the court of public opinion, but we, in our judgment, and through the board of the National Arts Council, are the ones that select the adjudicators. We choose these people, in terms of their pedigree, their track record, their understanding of the arts, and the work they have done in the arts, and we say they deserve to be able to judge and they have the expertise.

“So we don’t just select. We don’t just nominate them. It is a very professional process that is run by experts in the arts.

“Once they have decided, once the submissions have come in by the 30th of November, they meet and they all get their perks, and they start to develop their top 20.

“They start to develop their top 10. Then there are now meetings where there are rigorous and robust debates about why, and justifications, so there’s such robust conversation that happens,” said Nyanhi.

ZBC