Delta State Hosts First-Ever Student Literary Festival as LightRay! Launches Project ECHO Chamber

Asaba, Delta State – May 22, 2026 – Students, educators, writers, poets, librarians, and government officials from across Delta State’s 25 Local Government Areas will converge in Asaba this weekend for the inaugural LightRay! / DISTORTION Orientation Festival, marking the official launch of Project ECHO Chamber – the first student-focused literary festival in the state’s history.

Hosted by LightRay! Media in partnership with the Office of the Head of Service, Delta State, the festival, a year long event which commenced with the launch of Delta State’s First Ever World Book Day Event on March 6th – which has now become the Official World Book Day in Delta State, will kickoff with the Phase 1 Orientation Programme on May 22nd at the Press Centre, Government House, Asaba. The theme, DISTORTION, challenges students to disrupt silence, distort outdated narratives about gender, youth, toxic manosphere, human dignity, and amplify new voices across the state.

Project ECHO Chamber: A Platform for Student Voice

Project ECHO Chamber is a statewide initiative designed to Engage students with ideas that matter, Create spaces for original storytelling, Hear and amplify voices across all 25 LGAs, and help young people Own their future through literacy, critical thinking, and expression.

“Delta State has 25 LGAs, thousands of stories, and a generation that refuses to be silent,” said Lady Ejiro Umukoro, Lead Organizer, LightRay! Media, Books and Creative Society. “Project ECHO Chamber is not just an event. It’s a movement to make sure every student in Delta knows their voice matters and has a platform to use it. It is also a two-prong initiative that tackles the Consciencisation of Boys, especially in the era of toxic Manosphere misinformation and misdirection.”

Festival Highlights

The Orientation Festival featured:

• Student Competitions: Book Club Formation, Spoken Word, Stage Play, and Book-a-thons
• Delta State Book Record Attempt: A statewide reading challenge to set a new benchmark for student engagement
• Workshops & Masterclasses: Led by Nigerian writers, poets, griots, and communication strategists
• Stakeholder Dialogues: Sessions with educators, librarians, book clubs, and representatives from the Office of the Head of Service and Delta State House of Assembly
• Awards: Recognition for outstanding students, teachers, librarians, and book clubs

The festival opens at 10:00 AM, with the keynote address delivered by Lady Ejiro Umukoro, Founder & President LightRay! Media, Books and Creative Society, to an audience of secondary school students, educators, and government partners. Her book, DISTORTION, is approved by the Ministry of Education as a literature text for secondary students. It’s sequel, The DISTORTION of HADASSAH won the South South TYB Young Adult Literature Prize 2025.

The LightRay! / DISTORTION Festival approved by the Ministry of Education (Basic and Secondary School) is a 5-year project year long event.

Building a Culture of Reading and Civic Voice

Project ECHO Chamber aims to address declining reading culture by meeting students where they are – in schools, on social media, and through performance – and connecting them to the power of literature and public expression. The initiative will continue beyond the festival with school-based book clubs, writer-in-residence programs, and quarterly student showcases across the state.

“Literature dies when it stays in books. It lives when it becomes performance, conversation, and movement,” said Nana Lyamgohn, Director of Affairs, LightRay! Media. “We’re here to distort the old narrative and start a new echo.”

Acknowledged Partners

The festival acknowledges the support and presence of key partners including Dr. Mrs. Mininim Oseji; Greatman Obusom; Engr. Fuludu Gabriel Perezide (Immediate Past PS, Ministry of Works); Smart Edoge, Deputy Clerk Administration, Delta State House of Assembly; Awele Ilusanmi (President LiTACO), Comrade McCartney Obrotu, Chairman (University of Benin Alumni Asaba Branch); Chief Berkeley Asiafa, President General of Ozoro Kingdom; Celestina Ajobena, SA on Women Affairs; Ugo Osuya, Communication Strategist and Collaborator; and Eloho Ogboudu, Office of the SSG, Delta State.

About LightRay! Media

LightRay! Media is a media and development organization focused on amplifying underrepresented voices and advancing literacy, civic engagement, and creative expression across Nigeria. The LightRay! / DISTORTION Orientation Festival, tagged Project ECHO Chamber is its flagship youth and education initiative for 2026.

Media Contact:
LightRay! Media
Director of Festival
FB: @LightRayMedia, @LadyEumukoro
+2348035926901