Zaki Biam Yam Market is the largest yam market in the world. It is an open-air market located in Zaki Biam, a town in the Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State, Nigeria. The market specializes in selling and distributing yams, a staple crop in the region. It is a significant hub for yam trading, attracting buyers and sellers from various parts of Nigeria and neighboring countries.
Zaki Biam Yam Market is the largest mono-product market in Nigeria.[1] [2]
The market attracts buyers and sellers from various regions of the Nigeria and even neighboring countries. Buyers from as far as Cameroon, Niger, and Ghana patronize the market.[2] About 200 truckloads of yams depart the market every day and yams are never completely bought.[3] [4]
In June 2020 the Federal Government of Nigeria inaugurated a storage facility in the market to serve as an industrial hub for neighboring yam-producing states like Nasarawa and Taraba. The facility also consists of 660 units of reconstructed stalls/sheds, internal roads, administrative buildings and a solar-powered borehole.[5]
Nigeria is the principal contributor to yam production, boasting an annual 17 million tonnes, constituting a substantial 70-76% share of the worldwide output. The majority of these tubers, amounting to approximately two million weekly, traverse through the Zaki Biam Yam Market, signifying a pivotal hub in the distribution network.[6]