ENUGU, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)- The Igbo Women Assembly (IWA) has sounded an alarm over the escalating mass departure of Igbos from the South-East, with many relocating to different parts of the country and abroad.
The Igbo women group raised this concern during a press briefing in Umuahia on Wednesday, emphasizing the substantial outflow of people settling permanently or establishing businesses and families outside Igbo land.
Nneka Chimezie, the National President of IWA, highlighted the detrimental impact of this exodus on the development of Igbo land.
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She expressed worry about the declining population and the dispersion of resources away from the region, noting that many departing individuals showed little interest in returning or preserving Igbo language and culture.
Chimezie said, “We aim to shift our focus from importation to production, encouraging our people to stay in the South-East and contribute to its growth through industrial development.”
The IWA president also raised an alarm about the dwindling status of the Igbo language, stating, “The language is now at a dying stage, with both adults and children increasingly avoiding it; we fear it could go extinct in a few years.”
To address these concerns, IWA has established schools in Lagos State dedicated to Igbo studies and culture. Chimezie announced plans for collaboration with Ohanaeze Ndigbo to revive the Igbo language and culture, urging traditional rulers, church leaders, and community figures to join the crusade and reverse this concerning trend.