ALECSO announces the final list of candidates for the 'Ibn Khaldoun-Senghor' Translation Prize

The Arab Organization for Education, Culture and Science (ALECSO) announced yesterday the final list of candidates for the 19th edition of the Ibn Khaldoun-Senghor Translation Prize for 2026.

In a statement, the organization noted that the prize’s jury for translation between Arabic and French in the fields of literature and humanities convened, with representatives from ALECSO and the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF), to deliberate on the works nominated for the prize in accordance with the criteria established in the prize’s internal regulations.

The statement clarified that these criteria include the recency of the subject matter of the translated work, its importance, and its impact on intellectual and literary spheres, as well as the fidelity of the translation to the original text, its accuracy in conveying its content, the integrity of its linguistic formulation, the fluency of its style, and its aesthetic quality.

Deliberations by the jury resulted in the selection of five translators whose works advanced to the final list, in recognition of their quality and compliance with the established criteria. They are: French writer Jassas Al-Aghbari for his translation from French to Arabic of the book *Under the Dome of Socotra*; Moroccan writer Sufyan Belhaj for his translation from French to Arabic of the book *Under the Tent: My Memories of the Tetouan War 1860*; Tunisian writer Youssef Ben Othman for his translation from French to Arabic of the book *Ibn al-Haytham: The Emergence of Classical Modernity*; Lebanese writer Ghazi Baroudi for his translation from French to Arabic of the book *The Golden Rhino: Tales from Medieval Africa*; and Moroccan writer Mohamed El-Dakhissi for his translation from Arabic to French of the book *Embassy Journey: The Elixir in the Unshackling of the Captive*.

The organization clarified that the winner of the prize will be announced on December 3 next year, with the certificate presented at a ceremony held at the headquarters of the International Organization of La Francophonie in Paris.

The Ibn Khaldoun-Senghor Prize is dedicated to translation between Arabic and French in the fields of literature, humanities, and social sciences. Established in 2007 under a cooperation agreement between ALECSO and the International Organization of La Francophonie, it has been awarded to some of the most prominent translators, writers, and philosophers in the Arab world and the Francophone space.

The prize consists of a certificate of appreciation and a monetary award of 10,000 euros, shared equally between ALECSO and the International Organization of La Francophonie.