The Programme Manager, Enugu State Agricultural Development Programme (ENADEP), Mr Onyema Nwodo, says the government is tackling cocoa-yam disease in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the disease withers cocoa-yam plants.
Nwodo told NAN in Enugu on Saturday that ADP had collected samples from the farmers in the area and sent them to the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), Umudike in Abia, which coordinates research in root crops.
He said the cocoa-yam disease manifested two years ago and made the farmers in the area to lose a lot of the crop.
“The implication is that even with N2,000 you cannot buy enough cocoa-yam to make a pot of soup.
Nwodo explained that the ADP had to involve the (NRCRI) to look into the disease and when the report was released, it was made public.
He urged the chairmen of Local Government Areas in the state and the department of agriculture to ensure that the disease was controlled.
