By Tony Okafor, Awka
Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, has thrown down the gauntlet, entering next year’s biggest yam harvest competition.
He challenged farmers, government appointees, and businessmen to join him in the competition.
At the 2024 State New Yam Festival in Awka, which took place on Saturday at the Alex Ekwueme Square, Awka, the state capital, Soludo, a self-described subsistence farmer, vowed to double his efforts to produce the biggest yams and emerge as the best yam producer in 2025.
To encourage others, Soludo awarded ₦1 million each to the top four yam producers, with the best producer receiving ₦3 million and a tricycle donated by a philanthropist.
He also mandated his appointees and businessmen to engage in farming, specifically yam production, to compete with him in the November 2025 edition.
This competition is part of Soludo’s “Farm to Feed” policy, aimed at boosting farming, improving yields, and reducing prices .
Anambra State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism,Don Onyenji, described new yam festival as a symbolic traditional event that brings the Igbo people together to showcase their cultural heritage.
Community leader Cosmas Agagbo
urged Anambra’s population to take up the challenge and engage in farming, regardless of their professions.
With Soludo leading by example, will the people of Anambra rise to the challenge and make next year’s yam harvest competition one to remember?
