Edwin Semzaba is a Tanzanian novelist, playwright, actor and director. He writes his works mainly in Swahili

Swahili language

Swahili or Kiswahili is a Bantu language spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Mozambique Channel coastline from northern Kenya to northern Mozambique, including the Comoro Islands. It is also spoken by ethnic minority groups in Somalia...

. He teaches in the Department of Fine and Performing Arts at the University of Dar es Salaam

University of Dar es Salaam

The University of Dar es Salaam is a university in the Tanzanian city of Dar es Salaam. The university was born out of a decision taken in 1970 to split the then University of East Africa into three independent universities; Makerere University , University of Nairobi and University of Dar es...

, Tanzania. At the University he teaches, among other courses, creative writing and acting.
He won the first award of East African Writers awarded by the Institute of Swahili Research (Taasisi ya Unchunguzi wa Kiswahili, TUKI) for his novel Funke Bugebuge and the "grandchildren's adventure book writing competition" awarded by the Swedish Embassy in Tanzania (2007).

Novels

• Funke Bugebuge published by Dar es Salaam University Press in 1999.
• Tausi wa Alfajiri published by HEKO Publishers in 1996