See some photos from the evening here: Award Ceremony
For the award winners, too, the award ceremony and the supporting programme, which included talks at schools and the university, were significant and memorable.
The award winner Mahdi Yahya wrote to us as follows:
Dear members of schwelle Foundation,
thank you very much once again for everything you have organized and for all the care, effort, professionalism, and humanity that surrounded the entire Bremen Peace Award experience.
What happened in Bremen was truly unforgettable for me, Vera Al Mawla and for Peace of Art. The ceremony, the meetings, the discussions, and the sincere human connection we experienced with all of you carried a very deep meaning far beyond the award itself.
As I mentioned during the event, this recognition is not only a great honor, but also a huge responsibility on my shoulders and on the shoulders of my team. We truly hope to remain worthy of your trust and this important recognition through continuing our humanitarian, cultural, and peace work with even more commitment and dedication.
Please send my warm greetings and deepest thanks to the entire Stiftung die schwelle team and to everyone who contributed to making this event so meaningful and special.
This award will directly contribute to the growth of Peace of Art and strengthen our mission in creating peace, dialogue, human connection, and hope through culture, art, and humanitarian engagement.
With deep gratitude and warm regards,
Mahdi Yahya
This is what the Nigerien publishing house Gashingo, run by publisher Bako Malam Abdou, wrote to us:
A source of immense pride for Niger, for African culture and for the Gashingo publishing house.
On 8 May 2026, Bako Malam Abdou was awarded the 2026 International Peace Award by the schwelle Foundation in Bremen, Germany, in recognition of his commitment to the Mate ni kani organisation.
This prestigious international award recognises exemplary commitment to literacy in one’s mother tongue, the transmission of knowledge, the promotion of books and dialogue between peoples. Through his works, his actions and his commitment to culture, Bako Malam Abdou has for years championed a firm conviction: Education, culture and national languages are instruments of dignity, development and peace.
To see this work recognised in the heart of Europe, in the city of Bremen, is deeply moving and a great honour.
Gashingo Publishing extends its sincere thanks to the schwelle Foundation, its partners and all those who believe in the power of education and culture to create a better world.
Congratulations to Bako Malam Abdou on this historic recognition.
Niger is beaming.
Africa inspires.
And culture continues to pave the way to peac
