The British Book Awards, fondly known as “The Nibbies”, have announced the judging panel for its 2022 edition with five notable African writers listed.

Natasha Onwuemezi, an associate editor at The Bookseller is chairing the Discover Award panel, on which Obioma Ugoala, author of forthcoming book The Problem with My Normal Penis: Myths of Race, Sex and Masculinity, is a judge. Abi Dare author of bestselling novel The Girl With the Louding Voice is a judge for the Debut Fiction award.  Former Rugby player and TV Broadcaster Ugo Monye is in Children’s Fiction. Finally, award-winning fiction writer Irenosen Okojie is a judge for the Overall Book of the Year award.

“The Nibbies” is an annual award run by the book trade magazine The Bookseller and honors quality publications across several categories. This year, they have made significant improvements from previous years in order to make the prize more inclusive, adding a new category specifically to highlight underrepresented voices.

Last year’s judging panel included the Nigerian novelist Oyinkan Braithwaite and Ghanaian author and filmmaker Yaba Badoe.

The award shortlists will be announced in March. The award ceremony will take place in central London on May 23rd alongside a live-streamed event.

Go here for more on the judges.