Enugu’s New Yam Festival is gearing up to be one of its biggest cultural and economic highlights of the year as the 2025 New Yam Music Festival (NYMF) returns this December, promising to draw thousands of visitors, investors, and cultural enthusiasts from across Nigeria and around the world.

The grand finale, scheduled for December 14 and 15 at the Amadeo Event Centre, is expected to further cement Enugu’s growing reputation as a hub for culture-driven tourism and creative industry investment.

According to the organisers, the New Yam Festival, supported by the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC) and the Enugu State Ministries of Culture, Tourism and Agriculture, goes beyond the usual festivities. It aims to serve as a springboard for local economic growth, hospitality development, and global creative exchange.

“The festival was conceived as more than a celebration; it is an economic and cultural movement that reconnects people to their roots while opening doors for global engagement in African culture,” said Mr Big Sea, co-founder of the festival and key stakeholder in Heritage and Culture, the parent company of NYMF.

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This year’s edition, themed around renewal and innovation, will celebrate the end of the Igbo farming season while spotlighting how culture and commerce can work together. Organisers say the festival could inject millions into Enugu’s local economy through hotel bookings, transportation, crafts, and food sales, as visitors pour in from across Nigeria, the United Kingdom, China, Portugal, and Qatar, countries where the festival has previously held international showcases.

Beyond music and masquerades, the 2025 edition will explore agricultural innovation, creative enterprise, and business partnerships, highlighting how cultural heritage can power entrepreneurship. Activities will include a yam pyramid exhibition, indigenous art markets, agricultural showcases, and performances by top Igbo artists blending traditional rhythms with contemporary Afrobeats.

Last year’s edition of the New Yam Festival drew more than 3,000 participants, including government officials, royal fathers, and cultural icons. This year, organisers expect a larger turnout, with Enugu’s hospitality and tourism sectors bracing for a major uptick in business.

Ahead of the grand finale, exclusive pre-events in Lagos will connect investors, creative leaders, and business icons to opportunities in Nigeria’s expanding creative economy.

Ultimately, the New Yam Music Festival 2025 aims to do more than entertain. It seeks to position Enugu as the beating heart of Igbo culture and a gateway for global cultural tourism, showing that tradition, when creatively reimagined, can be a powerful tool for economic revival and international collaboration.

Cynthia Nwanonyiri