San Luis, Obispo, Calif., USA and Lagos, Nigeria – April 10, 2026 — Global Game Jam (GGJ) and Lagos Games Week have announced a new partnership for Pan-African Jam 2026, a game jam being organized as part of the official leadup to Lagos Games Week.
The initiative is designed to bring together game developers from across Africa to collaborate, create, and showcase their work under a shared theme: “Play Without Borders.” The jam aims to nurture creativity, encourage cross-border collaboration, and highlight Africa’s growing presence in game development, while also building community and visibility for Lagos Games Week.
The game jam will run from April 24 to May 11, 2026, with winners announced on May 25, 2026 following a two-week judging period.
The virtual event is open to participants from any country in Africa. The jam will have a $2,500 USD cash prize pool plus in-kind prizes.
Award categories include:
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Overall Winner
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Best UEFN Game
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Best Tabletop Game
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Best Mobile Game
The jam will also recognize a top game from each participating jam country and a top Inter-African team for cross-border collaboration.
The jam will kick off on April 24 with a special livestream from the Lagos Games Week and GGJ teams. Additional virtual jam-specific programming will be announced in April.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE
Jam coordination and submission will take place on itch.io and Global Game Jam’s Discord. Teams can be comprised of international team members, but 75% of participants must reside on the African continent. Solo devs are allowed. The jam is open to developers ages 18+. Registration will open in early April. Interested jammers can sign up to be notified when the jam goes live on the GGJ site: https://globalgamejam.org/pan-
“Every year, we see the incredible talent and creativity of jammers across Africa during the annual Global Game Jam,” said Maria Burns Ortiz, Executive Director of Global Game Jam. “This collaboration with Lagos Games Week allows us to further support and amplify game development ecosystems across the continent, extending our impact far beyond a single weekend event.”
Through this partnership, Global Game Jam and Lagos Games Week aim to create new opportunities for African developers to connect, collaborate, and contribute to the global games industry.
“Our partnership with Global Game Jam is about championing experimentation and building the habit of prototyping. We’re excited to see creators solve problems, iterate, and finish – essential steps for Africa’s next generation of game makers.” said Bukola Akingbade, Lagos Games Week
The Pan-African Jam forms part of the broader Lagos Games Week 2026 programme, which will take place on June 18–19, 2026 at the National Theatre in Lagos, Nigeria. The winning team will also be highlighted at Lagos Games Week and have an opportunity to showcase their games if attending the event.
About Global Game Jam
Global Game Jam is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to empower people around the world to learn, experiment, and create together through the medium of games. In addition to organizing the largest game jam in the world, GGJ works year-round to support, promote, and grow the global game development community.
About Lagos Games Week
Now in its third year, Lagos Games Week is an annual trade fair for video games. Held in Lagos, Nigeria, the event continues its focus on supporting the growth of the African games ecosystem through talent development, local market activation, external development capacity, and the creation of original intellectual property. The 2026 edition will also feature participation from international publishers and studios including Focus Entertainment, Oceanview Group, and Ubisoft, alongside initiatives such as the Next Gen Summit led by Games for Change. https://lagosgamesweek.com/
