| Zamenga Batukezanga | |
| Birth Date: | 20 February 1933 |
| Birth Place: | Bas-Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire) |
| Death Place: | Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (Zaire) |
| Alma Mater: | Université libre de Bruxelles |
| Occupation: | Author, public speaker |
| Genre: | Fiction, essays, poetry |
| Notableworks: | Mille kilomètres à pied (1979) Un boy à Pretoria (1989) |
Zamenga Batukezanga (1933–2000) was a Congolese writer and philanthropist. Zamenga's work explored African culture.[1] He's been named the "most popular Congolese writer" of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Zamenga Batukezanga was born 20 February 1933 in nkobo- Luozi Bas-Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo. In the 1950s, he did his graduate studies at Mangembo and in 1960, a scholarship allowed him to study at l'Université libre de Bruxelles, in Belgium. Back in Congo in 1965, he was appointed Director of Student Social Work. In 1977, he opened a center for the rehabilitation of young people with physical disabilities (Kikesa), which he headed until 1981. In 1984, he was appointed director general of the National Society of Congolese publishers, composers and authors.
Towards the end of the 1980s, Zamenga decided to leave everything. He refused a post at Unesco in 1986 to devote himself entirely to writing and philanthropic works. He spent the last years of his life in his native region, serving the poor. He dies on (age 67) in Kinshasa[2]
Every year, the Zamenga Batukezanga Literary Prize is awarded to a Congolese writer under the age of 40.[3]