Moroccan Cartoonist Mbarek Bouali Wins First Prize at the International Festival of Caricature in Africa (FICA 2026) in Agadir

The international jury of the 9th International Festival of Caricature in Africa (FICA 2026), held in Agadir from November 12 to 15 under the theme “A World With-out Wars,” has awarded First Prize in the international competition to Moroccan cartoonist Mbarek Bouali for his artwork titled “Chil-dren of Wars.”

The award follows a highly competitive edition that brought together more than 1,427 artworks submitted by artists representing 78 countries. Second Prize went to Mustafa Zeki Yuce of Turkey, while Third Prize was awarded to Nader Hafezi of France. In addition, three special prizes were granted to Alireza Pakdel (Canada), Heibat Ahmadi (Iran), and Jitet Kustana (Indonesia), respectively.

The winning cartoon—a version of which was previously published in the Moroccan digital newspaper Hespress in 2023—depicts winged chil-dren ascending toward the sky amid fal-ling bombs and des-troyed homes, delivering a poignant visual condemnation of the hor-rors of war. Reacting to the honor, Mbarek Bouali expressed his pride in the recognition, describing it as a triumph for Moroccan caricature and for Hespress, where he has published his cartoons daily since 2011 and which places editorial cartooning at the heart of its journalistic mission.

The entries were evaluated by an international jury chaired by Morocco’s Mohamed El Abed, alongside artists and critics from Morocco, Syria, Kazakhstan, Senegal, Azerbaijan, Guinea, Kosovo, Brazil, and Portugal. The 9th edition of FICA was organized by the Atlas Association of Caricature in partnership with the satirical weekly Le Canard Libéré, with the support of Morocco’s Ministry of Youth, Culture, and Communication.