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GENERAL INFORMATION
Abia State, home to Enyimba Football Club of Aba, two time African Champion league winners (2003 & 2004) was created on 27th August, 1991, by the then Federal Military Government under General lbrahim Babangida, out of Imo State.
"Abia" is an acronym formed from the initial letters of four groups of people, namely:
Aba, Bende, lsuikwuato and Afikpo. These constituted the major groups in the state at its creation.
Located in the southeastern region of Nigeria, Abia State lies within approximately latitudes 4° 40' and 6° 14' north, and longitudes 7° 10' and 8° east. The state shares common boundaries to the north with Ebonyi State; to the south and southwest with Rivers State; and to the east and southeast with Cross River and Akwa lbom States respectively. To the west is Imo State, and to the northwest is Anambra State.
The state covers an area of about 5,243.7 sq. km which is approximately 5.8 per cent of the total land area of Nigeria. With its capital at Umuahia, it has seventeen LGAs (listed above).
The administrative headquarters of the local government area is located in one of the urban or semi urban areas within the local government area. Each autonomous community has a traditional head, the Eze, that has been identified, selected, appointed and installed by the people according to their own tradition and presented to the government for recognition.
Selection may be hereditary, elective or rotatory. For such an Eze to be recognised, the local government chairman has to endorse the documents presented to him by the Eze before sending the documents to the governor for recognition. The Eze also has to be presented by the autonomous community at an appointed date and time to the governor or his representative, for recognition.
The government also appoints one Eze from each autonomous community. An election is usually conducted amongst recognised Ndi Ezes for each local government to select members to serve at the council of Ndi Eze at the state level.
About half of the members of the council are selected while half are appointed. Every member of the council of Ndi Eze is required to serve for three years unless prevented from doing so by death or resignation. The council of Ndi Eze in Abia State is made up of 36 Ezes with one chairman and two deputy chairmen.
ECONOMY
Agriculture is the major occupation of the people of Abia State. This is induced by the rich soil which stretches from the northern to the southern parts of the state. Subsistence farming is prevalent and about 70 per cent of the population is engaged in it.
A few farmers also produce on a large scale. Farming in the state is determined by the seasonal distribution of rainfall. Some farmers now use irrigation methods. The main food crops grown are yam, cassava, rice, cocoyam and maize while the cash crops include oil-palm, rubber, cocoa, banana and various types of fruits.
Modern poultry has been introduced and is practised by a good number of people, hence there is adequate supply of eggs and other poultry products in the state. The Golden Chicken project at Ogwe in Ukwa Local Government Area is a modern mechanised poultry farm.
There are three agricultural zones in Abia State: Aba, Umuahia and Bende. In the Aba and Umuahia agricultural zones, such cash crops as palm produce, cocoa and rubber are produced, while food crops such as yam, cassava, rice, plantain, banana, maize and cocoyam are produced in large quantities.
The Bende agricultural zone is a major producer of rice and yam. Fishing is also carried out by people who live along the Imo River. Large areas of forest can be found in all the Local Government Areas. They provide raw materials for the pulp and paper industry.
Abia is also an oil producing state.
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