By the end of this article, you will know how many states are in the North East regionof our country. Learn interesting facts about each of the North East states in Nigeria.
The North East geopolitical zone is one of the administrative divisions in Nigeria known as the North Eastern State. It was created from the Northern region on the 27th of May 1967. Its capital was Maiduguri. On the 3rd of February 1976, the North Eastern state was divided into three states: Bauchi, Borno, Gongola. These three states were further divided into six. On the 27th of August 1991, old Borno State was divided into the modern day Borno State and Yobe State. Also, on the same day, the old Gongola State was divided into Adamawa State and Taraba State. Old Bauchi State was divided into the present day Bauchi State and Gombe State in October 1996.
Before the creation of the present day states, the North Eastern State had governors. Current Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari was the governor of the North Eastern State from July 1975 to February 1976.
The North East Nigeria is an agricultural region. However, there are also negative issues. In recent times, the states in the Northern region of Nigeria has experienced a lot of terrorist attacks by the Boko Haram. These attacks have led to the loss of thousands of lives and properties.
So, in present day Nigeria, the states in the North East Nigeria include:
● Adamawa
● Bauchi
● Borno
● Gombe
● Taraba
● Yobe
Let us look at some details about each of the states.
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Adamawa State
Adamawa State slogan is known as the Land of Beauty. The state was created from the defunct Gongola State in August 1991. The capital city is Yola. Adamawa State is one of the largest states in Nigeria. The state shares border with Cameroon on its eastern part. There are mountains with large river valleys crossing them located in the states. The mountains are the Adamawa Mountain and Mandara Mountain. The rivers are the River Benue and the River Gongola. Also, the valleys of Cameroon forms part of the undulating landscape of the state. Adamawa State is blessed with an abundance of iron, limestone, lead, zinc, etc. The people of Adamawa states are mostly farmers and fishermen. The Fulanis in the state are majorly cattle rearers.
Some of the interesting places to visit in Adamawa State include:
● Koma Hills
● Lamurde Hot Spring
● Mandara Mountain
● Sukur Cultural Landscape
● Sukur Hourists’ Haven
Bauchi State
Bauchi State is known as the Home of Peace and Hospitality. The modern day Bauchi came into existence in August 1991 from the old Bauchi State. The capital city is Bauchi. There are fifty-five major ethnic groups in Bauchi State. Some of them include Badawa, Butawa, Fulani, Gerawa, Bolewa, Fa’awa, Hausa, Jarawa, Karekare, Kanuri, Wariawa, Savawa, and Zulawa. These ethnic groups have a lot of interaction between each other both in marriage and trading. As a result of these interactions, they all have a lot of similarities in their language, dressing, festival etc. The people of Bauchi are popular for one thing: they are good at traditional boxing and wrestling. Their traditional boxing is known as Dambe while their traditional wrestling is called Kokowa.
Bauchi State is also popular for its art works and craft works of all kinds. Their most popular crafts include the beautiful embroidered gown and caps popularly called babbanriga. Bauchi State is blessed with an abundance of fertile land for agriculture and cattle rearing. Some of the cash crops grown in Bauchi include guinea corn, groundnut, maize, millet, and rice.
Places of interest to visit in Bauchi include:
● Babban Gwani at Kafin Madaki
● First Mining Beacon
● Iron Smelting
● Kalban Hill
● Lame/Burra Game Reserve
● Marshall Caves
● Sumu Wildlife
● Tunga Dutse
● Wikki Warm Spring
● Yankari Game Reserve
Borno State
Borno State is known as the Home of Peace although it has not enjoyed much of that in recent times. The capital of Borno is Maiduguri. The state has twenty-seven Local Government Areas. The state shares border with the Niger Republic on its north and with Cameroon on its east. The state is also bounded by Chad on the north-east. Borno State is one of the most plague states in the North East by the insurgence of Boko Haram. In April 2014, 276 female students were kidnapped from the Government Secondary School in a town called Chibok in Borno State.
Gombe State
Gombe State is nicknamed the Jewel of the Savannah. It was carved out of the old Bauchi State on the 1st of October 1996. The capital city is Gombe. The state is divided into eleven Local Government Areas. Gombe is a multi-ethnic state with twenty-one languages spoken in the state. However, Hausa is the common language spoken by all. Farming is the main business of the locals of Gombe State. Crops like asha, beans, cassava, maize, millet, rice, and soya beans are parts of their main crops.
Gombe is blessed with an abundance of natural resources such as uranium, gypsum, and limestone. There are also mineral resources such as aquamarine, coal, and columbite. Some historical sites located in Gombe include:
● The Bormi Battle site
● The Tula Battlefield
● The Tomb of Bubayero Gombe Abba
Taraba State
Taraba State is nicknamed Nature’s Gift of the Nation. It is one of two states created from the defunct Gongola State in August 1991. The capital city is Jalingo. Taraba also shares a border with Cameroon. Taraba is divided into sixteen Local Government Areas. The state has an undulating landscape with some mountainous terrains. Four main rivers which rise from the Cameroon Mountains and pass through the state to join the River Niger are River Benue, Donga, Ibi, and Taraba. Taraba consists of almost eighty ethnic groups which speak different languages. There are a lot of festivals held in Taraba every year to celebrate the harvest, marriages, installation of rulers, initiation of people into manhood or womanhood, etc. Some interesting places of culture and tourism include:
● Mambilla Plateau: A chain of mountains: Alantika, Adamawa, Obudu, and Shebsi
● Gashaka-Gumti Game Reserve
● Ngel-Nyaki Forest Reserve
● Donga River Basin Forest
Yobe State
Yobe slogan is The Young Shall Grow. It was founded in August 1991. The capital city of Yobe is Damaturu. Yobe is divided into seventeen Local Government Areas. The state shares its northern border with the Republic of Niger. Agriculture is the major occupation of the indigenes of Yobe. The locals are majorly farmers, fishermen, and livestock rearers. Yobe has one of the biggest cattle markets in West Africa. The state is blessed with natural resources such as kaolin, quartz, and gypsum.
The state is made up of five major ethnic groups: Bade, Fulani, Hausa, karekare, and Kanuri. They have a very rich and diverse cultural heritage with historical affiliations to Eastern Arabian and North Africa. Some key festivals which are held yearly in the state include Bade Fishing and Cultural Festival, Barakau Festival, Kamti Festival.
Places of interest in Yobe include:
● Dagona Birds Sanctuary
● Dokshi Spring Water
● Dufuna Canoe which is the Africa’s oldest known boat
● Tulo-Tulowa a.k.a. The Desert Land of Hope, etc.
These are just some few facts about these states. You can read more about individual states to learn about their history, their people, and their culture. The Federal Government of Nigeria is also working actively to establish peace and security in the North Eastern states of Nigeria.
READ ALSO: South East states in Nigeria
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