The NUS Singapore History Prize is an annual book award to honour outstanding publications on Singapore history. It is open to non-fiction and fiction in any of the country’s official languages: Chinese, English, Malay, and Tamil. The winner of the prize is selected by a panel of judges consisting of five members appointed by the President of NUS, including Prof Mahbubani.
The top-level NUS Prize is awarded to a publication that makes “an important contribution to the understanding of the past, and its significance for our future, through an examination of Singapore’s history”. It was introduced in 2022, with the prize money set at S$50,000. The book must be authored or co-authored, and it may cover any period in Singapore’s history. The work must also be published between 1 June 2021 and 31 May 2024.
In the 2024 edition of the prize, the focus was on the theme’resonance’, which highlighted how literature can resonate with people and trigger their emotions and memories. The shortlist of six books was announced on 28 March, with a winner to be revealed in April.
This year, the prize has been divided into categories, with three awards for fiction, four for nonfiction, and one for poetry. The winner of each category will receive S$10,000, while the other shortlisted authors will each win S$3,000. In addition, the winners of the reader’s choice award will be presented with a book-purchase voucher worth S$50.
Winners of the NUS Singapore Literature Prize are selected by a panel of judges, consisting of five NUS professors. Previous NUS Prize winners include prominent authors and academics such as Tan Teck-Hin, Cheryl Tsai, and Phyllis Wee.
Ning Cai, who won the poetry category, is a Singaporean writer who focuses on social issues. Her works have been translated into various languages, and she has won numerous literary awards. She has written for both the BBC and Channel 4, and her first collection of poems was published in 2023.
Aside from her writing, Ning is passionate about community work. She has worked with various organisations, such as the Youth Council, to help young people develop their leadership potential. In addition, she has conducted workshops on self-development for children and teens.
Ning was also a finalist for the Harvard Prize Book award, which recognises pre-tertiary students who demonstrate a profound care for others. She and her team have organised projects such as an appreciation project for Town Council cleaners during the coronavirus pandemic, where they distributed packed food and groceries, and thank-you cards to the cleaners. The prize is worth US$25,000, and Ning hopes to use the money to help more underprivileged youths. In addition, Ning plans to start a social enterprise that provides virtual experiential learning for youths. This will allow them to explore different careers and build their confidence. She will also be using the prize to pursue her dream of becoming a bestselling author. She has already written two novels, and is working on a third.