Abia State

Abia is a state in the south eastern part of Nigeria.[5] The capital is Umuahia, and the major commercial city is Aba, which was formerly a British colonial government outpost in the region, and is also one of the most populated areas in Nigeria. Abia state was created in 1991 from part of Imo State.[6] It is one of the constituent states of the Niger Delta region.[5] It’s also the 5th most industrialized state in the country, and has the 4th highest index of human development in the country, with numerous economic activities and fast growing populations as recorded by the United nations early 2018. The state also houses the biggest cattle market in Nigeria.

Abia State, which occupies about 6,320 square kilometres, is bounded on the north and northeast by the states of Anambra, Enugu, and Ebonyi. To the west of Abia is Imo State, to the east and southeast are Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State respectively and to the south is Rivers State. The southern part of the State lies within the riverine part of Nigeria, it is a low-lying tropical rainforest with some oil-palm brush,[6] the southern portion gets heavy rainfall of about 2,400 millimetres (94 in) per year and is especially intense between the months of April through October.[7] The rest of the State is moderately high plain and wooded savanna.[6] The most important rivers in Abia State are the Imo and Aba Rivers which flow into the Atlantic Ocean through Akwa Ibom State.

Crude oil and gas production is a prominent activity, as it contributes over 39% of the State’s GDP.[8] However, the indigenous oil companies- through the Marginal Fields Programme (MFP)- have not found it easy to attract the requisite funding and infrastructural capacity to explore some of the marginal oil fields which are about 50 in the State.[9]

The manufacturing sector only accounts for 2% of the GDP.[8] The industrial centre of the state is in Aba, with textile manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, soap, plastics, cement, footwear, and cosmetics.[6] In addition to the above, Abia State Government has just built a 9,000 capacity multipurpose International Conference Centre in Umuahia. This edifice of international standard was built by Governor T.A Orji to enhance tourism as well as boost the state economy through hosting of major International and Local events.

Representing 27% of the GDP,[8] agriculture- which employs 70%[8] of the state workforce- is the second economic sector of Abia. With its adequate seasonal rainfall, Abia has much arable land that produces yams, maize, potatoes, rice, cashews, plantains, taro, and cassava.[6] Oil palm is the most important cash crop.[6]