Nigerian writer and poet, Salmah Oyiza Salam has emerged winner of the Best Poetry Collection for the prestigious Africa Laureate Awards 2026.
The Africa Laureate Awards is a prominent platform for the celebration of literary excellence across the continent and the broader African Diaspora.
The prestigious award to Ms Oiza is given by The Africa Laureate Awards (TALA), a body established to highlight literary excellence and significant contributions to the literary world.
Oyiza who hails from Kogi state, and based in the United Kingdom won the coveted title for the Best Poetry Collection, with her work titled “‘Foreign in a Long-Familiar Leap Year.”
The winner poetry collection was chosen for its originality, emotional depth, its long-lasting relevance and for standing out among other entries for its craftsmanship and ability to engage the reader with its thoughtful poetic expression.
According to the citation for the award, noted that the collection is characterized by “originality, care, and lasting relevance—a hallmark of the poetry collection in the realm of contemporary poetry.”
This selection places Salmah Salam Oiza among a growing list of writers who continue to shape the world of modern literature. With this award to Salmah Salam Oiza for the poetry collection ‘Foreign in a Long-Familiar Leap Year’, the work is now recognized as one of the prominent poetry collections celebrated during the TALA 2026 Awards.
