Louise Umutoni

Louise Umutoni is a PhD student in the History Department. Her research focus is on African liberation movements in the period after 1980.  She has published on African women in liberation movements and this work was selected for the Winihin-Jemide grant at the University of Oxford. She was also awarded an Aegis Trust research grant to complete work on the role of political settlements on women’s political inclusion.

Louise has run a publishing house based in East Africa called Huza Press for over a decade. Huza Press has published African writers such as Yolande Mukagasana, Billy Kahora and many emerging writers from across the continent. Its Radio Book Rwanda collection published in both print and audio was showcased by the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s annual dance festival as part of its inaugural component on literature. She has served as a Commonwealth Short Story Prize Judge. 

Louise started her career as a journalist and also worked as a Governance Adviser for the UK Department for International Development. She has Masters from the University of Oxford and Bachelors degree from the University of Ottawa.