Yam, which is one the staple food items in Nigeria and Africa as a continent is unique and popular among the major crops cultivated by farmers in small scale and commercial quantities over centuries. Its harvest during the months of July and August every year often attracts wide range of celebrations and festivals within the population of ethnic nationalities constituting Nigeria.
In Yorubaland, pomp and thrills associated with new yam festival have not only added colour and great expectation the celebrations have also gone a long way in re-awakening the cultural significance of yam and creating ample opportunities to underscore the need to embrace agriculture as means of shoring up the nation’s revenues. As parts of the fulfilment of his cultural tourism agenda, the Ooni of Ife, Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi last Wednesday led a multitude of indigenes, tourists and invited guests to celebrate the New Yam Festival which had not been so elaborately celebrated in the last 120 years.
But, the celebration of this year’s new yam festival by the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi in the historical town, further lent credence to the critical need for the protection and sustenance of African cultural heritage and promotion of the agriculture sub-sector as a veritable means of creating employment and generation of more revenue to cater to the socioeconomic expenditures of the nation.
Historically, the new yam festival is an interesting occasion commemorated annually by almost all of the ethnic groups in Nigeria. It usually takes place around the end of July, while some people still consider it taboo to eat the newly harvested yam before this date. The community’s high priest sacrifices a goat and pours its blood over a symbol representing the god of the harvest. Then the carcass is cooked and a soup is made from it, while the tubers of yam are boiled and pounded.
After the priest or the traditional ruler must have offered prayers for a better and bountiful harvest in the coming year, the New Yam Festival feast would be declared open by eating the pounded yam and soup. Then everyone partakes in the merriment that accompanies the New Yam Festival after which the people are now traditionally permitted to begin the consumption of new yam.
A highlight of the New Yam Festival, particularly among the Yoruba people, is the divination rite that determines the destiny of the community and the likelihood of an abundant harvest. One of the recently harvested tubers of yam is taken and divided in two. The two parts are thrown up in the air, and if one part lands face up and the other face down, it is considered a very promising sign. If both fall either face up or face down, it is taken as a bad omen
The newly repackaged festival known as “Odun Isu” in Yorubaland held at the Ile-Oodua palace, Ile-Ife, drew citizens from other Yoruba towns in large numbers, who thronged the ancient and historical town to celebrate with him amid colourful display of culture and traditions.
Addressing the mammoth crowd at the festival, Ooni Ogunwusi narrated that a deity called “Oreluere” who was one of the 401 deities sent by God (Olodumare) to establish the world was the first hunter on the planet earth that planted yam before Oduduwa supported him in making it a success.
While acknowledging that God had provided different kinds of necessary foods for sustainability of humanity, the traditional ruler observed that the process of originality of yam production emanated from the cradle of the Yorubas (Ile-Ife), emphasising that yam is one of the foods with high carbohydrate that gives energy to the generality.
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Oba Ogunwusi recalled that Oduduwa, the progenitor of the Yorubas collaborated with other deities on how yearly plantation would be guaranteed, stressing that “Owo dynasty also value the celebration yearly because yam festival is a very big event across yam belt in the world. Yoruba cultural heritage is very keen on it.”
According to him, “I charge all other neighbouring towns especially Yorubas to emulate the ancient city of Ile-Ife in making the event a continuous exercise. Our youths must go into huge commercial farming as Yoruba communities are known as producers of yam for the entire world. This would not only create employment for our teeming youths, it would also enhance the economic growth of our country.”
He continued, “this belt is called yam belt and these yam belts produce 70 per cent yam for national consumption, while others shared the remaining 30 per cent. The plantation started from the kingdom of Ife to the Middle Belt of Nigeria straight to Central African Republic and other West African countries down to Southern Africa. Individuals have their own capabilities and strength for production and Yorubas have mastered this and become the experts in yam production.”
Ooni Ogunwsui at the celebration of the New Yam Festival, however, who is also the co-chairman of the National Council of Traditional Rulers, noted that the past heroes of the nation and its founding fathers had suffered for the social and economic sustainability of Nigeria, emphasising the need for the people, most especially youths “to crown their efforts in appreciating them by embracing farming.”
Earlier in his remark, the Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Professor Eyitope Ogunbodede, congratulated Ooni Ogunwusi on the 2018 yam festival, commending him for promoting culture and tradition of Yoruba race globally.
Ogunbodede maintained that the New Yam Festival had further promoted the rich cultural exports of the Yorubas to the global community, with attraction of not only local and international tourists to Ile-Ife, but also to other Yoruba communities, pointing out that celebration of the New Yam Festival greatly added values to economic benefits of the nation as it would encourage farming and community development.
He appealed to the three tiers of government to ensure the improvement of storage facilities of agricultural produce for adequate safety for human consumption, just as he tasked government to provide infrastructures such as electricity, potable water and good roads for smooth transportation of farm produce from farms to the cities for more patronage.
Ogunbodede, who lauded the Ooni for his sustained efforts in maintaining peaceful coexistence on the campus of Obafemi Awolowo University and Ile-Ife in general, said “the relative peace we are enjoying in Obafemi Awolowo University community is the handiwork of God who used Ooni Ogunwusi. As we are enjoying him in Ife and Yoruba land at large, the entire nation is also enjoying him because of his peace mantra.
“He has severally organised for people from Brazil, Portugal, and Cuba to come to Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife to learn African languages. I here pledge that the school management would not disappoint him.”
Also, the Olopo of Ilode, Oba Oyedotun Akintibubo, commended the Ooni for the celebration of New Yam Festival, first in the history of Ife kingdom, assuring that the community, state and Nigeria at large would experience surplus over the years, for the farm produce especially yam and corn, which he said would be maximally grown extensively.
“With this year celebration of New Yam Festival, people will not experience hunger and hardship again, for the land will strongly produce seeds for the satisfaction of human race,” he said.
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