The Imo State Government has confirmed that the postponed 2025 edition of the annual Ahiajoku Lecture Series will now take place in the first quarter of 2026, following earlier deferments in September and November this year. The state government also disclosed plans to formalise the Ahiajoku Centre through legislation, reinforcing its status as a pan-Igbo cultural and intellectual institution.
Briefing journalists in Owerri at the weekend, the Director-General of the Ahiajoku Centre, Nze Ray Emeana, revealed that Governor Hope Uzodimma would soon forward a bill to the Imo State House of Assembly seeking the legal establishment of the Ahiajoku Centre. According to him, the proposed law would clearly define the centre’s structure, funding framework and scope of activities across Igbo-speaking states.
Emeana explained that the decision to shift the lecture, which was originally billed for November, was informed by prevailing tensions at the time, particularly the heightened atmosphere surrounding the trial of Nnamdi Kanu and other related security concerns. He noted that the postponement, though difficult, was necessary to allow the situation to stabilise.
He confirmed that the guest lecturer earlier announced, Bishop Godfrey Igwebuike Onah of the Nsukka Catholic Diocese, would still deliver the lecture. Bishop Onah, an academic and cleric, is expected to present an intellectual harvest titled “The Future of Igbo Economy Amidst the Challenges of Insecurity: A Call for Paradigm Shift.”
According to the DG, arrangements are already underway to ensure the lecture holds in the first quarter of next year, while another edition would take place in the traditional November slot in 2026. He added that Governor Uzodimma would personally unveil the lecturer for the 2026 edition at the appropriate time.
Tracing the history of the Ahiajoku Lecture Series, Emeana recalled that it was established in 1979 by the administration of the late Chief Sam Mbakwe. Since then, 28 lectures have been delivered by renowned Igbo scholars drawn from the seven Igbo-speaking states of Imo, Abia, Anambra, Enugu, Ebonyi, Delta and Rivers, making it one of the most enduring intellectual platforms in the region.
He emphasised that the Ahiajoku Lecture is designed to project and preserve the rich cultural and intellectual heritage of the Igbo people, dismissing claims in some quarters that the initiative has fetish undertones. “It is an intellectual cultural harvest that showcases Igbo values, history and thought systems,” he said.
Emeana also disclosed that plans were earlier concluded to honour the 28 past lecturers, alongside posthumous recognition for key contributors such as the late Chief Sam Mbakwe, Amu G. U. Anoka, Chief I. D. Nwoga and Dr Ihechukwu Madubuike, before the postponement disrupted the programme.
On the revitalisation of the centre, the DG noted that his appointment had ushered in renewed activity, including massive renovation of the Ahiajoku Centre and its surroundings. He outlined several sustainable sub-projects already underway, such as the establishment of a research and tradition unit, a digital library, a three-volume compendium of lectures delivered between 1979 and 2019, a museum gallery, a yam barn, soup preparation platforms and the revival of the Ezeji (yam) festival to promote agriculture.
He further disclosed that international engagements had begun to mobilise support for the centre, citing visits to countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom, where large Igbo communities reside. According to him, the response from the diaspora has been encouraging, with commitments towards funding and expansion of activities.
Emeana added that post-Ahiajoku lecture seminars and workshops would be introduced to interrogate past lectures and deepen intellectual engagement. He stressed that all Commissioners for Culture from the seven Igbo-speaking states are members of the Ahiajoku Lecture planning committee, reaffirming that “the Ahiajoku Lecture is a pan-Igbo affair anchored in Imo State, the home of Ahiajoku.”
