The yam holds a significant place in the spiritual and sacred history of Savalou, Benin. Each year, Savalou holds an annual Yam Festival that begins on the night of August 14 and continues all day on the 15th, which is when the yams are usually harvested.
However, Agnon Delphine, a professor and researcher at the University of Abomey-Calavi, told the Amsterdam News that climate change, soil drought, and the use of agrochemical fertilizers are currently having an impact on Savalou’s yam production. Despite western Benin’s generally favorable rainfall, the professor explained during a visit to the Collines de Savalou area that dry spells are affecting the moisture levels yams need while they are growing.
The effects of this will be evident in yam cultivation, because some farmers have been responding to the drought and rising temperatures by using agrochemical fertilizers instead of manually weeding and staking the plants. Chemical fertilizers are poisoning the soil and causing progressive desertification.
Delphine said this is affecting the yam harvest, and it also could mean that the Yam Festival is affected as well.
Savalou’s Mahi ethnic group uses the festival as a way to give thanks to their ancestors for the gift of life-sustaining yams. The yearly Yam Festival draws thousands of people and is a crucial event celebrating the staple crop and its connection to the region’s people and ancestral spirits. Residents of the West African nation view yams as a gift from Mother Earth. It has long been a key staple in the region, with Nigeria, Ghana, and Ivory Coast being top producers. About 94% of global yam production occurs in West Africa, according to scientific research publisher Frontiers in Agronomy. Respect for the yam is even extended to cultural protocols about fertility.
Due to its location on the Gulf of Guinea and with increasing global warming, though, Benin’s agricultural land is suffering from progressive drought. Local temperatures are expected to rise by 3 degrees above normal in the coming years, reaching nearly 89.6° Fahrenheit. A 2020 study found that local farmers view the lack of rainfall and sunshine as the primary climate factors affecting yam production.
“The climate crisis in Benin may have negative consequences for the annual Yam Festival,” said Marc Alabi, a Yoruba history professor who studies the traditional cultures of Benin and is completing his doctorate at the Felix Houphouet Boigny University in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. “Our cultural and spiritual traditions are linked to Mother Earth, to plants and water, but due to droughts and high temperatures, some of our rituals have been affected, and yams are not immune to these dangers.”
Delphine spoke about the process of transforming yams into dough for consumption, which begins with peeling the yams, then boiling them, and then placing them in a mortar so they can be pounded into a dough. Two people use two wooden mortars to pound the mixture until it becomes smooth and stretchable. Once in this form, it is suitable for eating with fish, vegetables, or beef, pork, or goat. Pounded yam, in Savalou, is called “agu.”
This practice of processing yams in a mortar and pestle is still alive today in Savalou and was also transported to the Americas. It forms part of the culinary culture of the African diaspora in Colombia’s Caribbean region. In Venezuela, arepa, sancocho, and other dishes feature yams as their root.
The Yam Festival itself features visits from musical groups like local artists Princesa Dosdi and Tonton Todas; talking drums accompanied by trumpets and trombones; dance troupes; local religious leaders; and even the local king of Savalou, currently Dada Ganfon Gbaguidi XV, who took the throne in August 2022. Gbaguidi XV is the 15th king since the kingdom’s establishment in the 17th century –– his father, Gandjegni Awoyo Gbaguidi XIII, made a historic visit to Harlem that was covered by the Amsterdam News in 2016. The fate of the yam could be tied to the Yam Festival. Alabi said he hopes the problem can be solved by returning to the original, natural method of cultivation. “Production has fallen, and the use of agrochemicals has had an impact on health,” said Alabi. “Today, our struggle is to curb the use of agrochemicals and protect Mother Nature and fresh water.”
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