Federal Capital Territory | |
---|---|
Nicknames: | |
Coordinates: 8°50′N7°10′E / 8.833°N 7.167°E | |
Country | Nigeria |
Date created | 3 February 1976 |
Capital | Abuja |
Government | |
• Body | Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) |
• Minister [1] | Nyesom Ezenwo Wike |
• Minister of State | Mariya Mahmoud Bunkure |
• Permanent Secretary | Ajakaiye Babatope |
• National Assembly delegation | Senator: Ireti Kingibe (LP) Representatives: List |
Area | |
• Total | 7,315 km2 (2,824 sq mi) |
Population (2006 Census) 1 | |
• Total | 1,406,239 |
• Estimate (2022 estimate) | 3,067,500 [2] |
• Density | 190/km2 (500/sq mi) |
GDP | |
Time zone | UTC+01:00 (WAT) |
ISO 3166 code | NG-FC |
HDI (2022) | 0.678 [3] medium · 4th of 37 |
Website | www.fcta.gov.ng |
^1 Preliminary results |
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is a federal territory in central Nigeria. Abuja, the capital city of Nigeria, is located in this territory. The FCT was formed in 1976 [4] from parts of the states of old Kaduna, Kwara, Niger, and Plateau states, with the bulk of land mass carved out of Niger state. The Federal Capital Territory is within the North Central region of the country. Unlike other states of Nigeria, which are headed by elected Governors, it is administered by the Federal Capital Territory Administration, headed by a minister, who is appointed by the president. [5]
The Federal Capital Territory was created upon the promulgation of decree number 6 of 1976. It came into existence due to a need to find a replacement for the capital city of Lagos, which had become congested and had little space for expansion. The area chosen as the new capital was principally Gwari Land (the home of the tribes referred to as the Gbagyis, their language is referred to as Gwari) with high concentrations of Muslims and Christians and a high degree of neutrality from the dominant ethnic groups. [6]
Decree 6 of 1976, gave the federal government rights over land within the territory. The population density prior to the takeover by the government was sparse with a population of 120,000 residents living in 840 villages and mostly of Gwari heritage. [6] Inhabitants were relocated to nearby towns like Suleja in Niger state, and New Karshi in Nasarawa State on the outskirts of the territory.
The territory is located just north of the confluence of the Niger River and Benue River. It is bordered by the states of Niger to the west and north for 179 km, Kaduna to the northeast for 45 km, Nasarawa to the east and south for 156 km, and Kogi to the southwest for 17 km.
Lying between latitudes 8.25 and 9.20 north of the equator and longitudes 6.45 and 7.39 east of Greenwich Meridian, The Federal Capital Territory is geographically located at the center of the country.
The Federal Capital Territory has a landmass of approximately 7,315 km2, and it is situated within the savannah region with moderate climatic conditions.
Minerals found in the FCT include marble, tin, clay, mica, and tantalite. [7]
The hills of the FCT provide home to many bushbuck, forest Black duiker, bush pig, chimpanzee and red-flanked duiker. Also found in FCT woodland are leopard, buffalo, roan antelope, Western hartebeest, elephant, warthog, grey duiker, dog-faced baboon, patas monkey and green monkey. [8]
Like some northern states in Nigeria, the Federal Capital Territory is relatively mild. The Federal Capital Territory is usually very hot between the months of January and April. [9] The average daily maximum temperature of the city is above 30 °C or 86 °F, with the month of March being the hottest month. The rainy season in the territory lasts between July and October of every year but the coolest month is December, during the harmattan season. [10] During the harmattan, there is high relative humidity, coupled with windy and foggy atmosphere.
The Federal Capital Territory is headed by the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Barr. Nyesom Wike, who is appointed by the Federal government. The Federal Capital Territory Minister appoints members to the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council. [11] [12] [13]
While the Federal Capital Territory minister administers the whole of the Federal Capital Territory, the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) specifically manages the construction and infrastructure development of the region. [14]
The territory is currently made up of six local government areas, namely: [15]
Languages of the Federal Capital Territory listed by local government area (LGA) are presented in tabular format as follows: [16]
LGA | Languages |
---|---|
Abaji | Bassa; Dibo, Gupa-Abawa, Ebira, Ganagana |
Municipal | Bassa; Gade; Gbagyi, Gwandara, Nupe, Hausa |
Bwari | Gwandara;Bassa; Ashe; Gbagyi |
Gwagwalada | Bassa; Gbari, Egibra, Hausa |
Kuje | Gade; Gbagyi, Bassa |
Kwali | Bassa, Gwandara; Gbagyi; Ebira, Kami, Abawa, Ganagana, Nupe, Hausa |
Hausa language is widely spoken at the Federal Capital Territory. [16]
Sheikh Ibrahim Ahmad Maqari is the Chief Imam of the Abuja National Mosque (2017).[ citation needed ]
21% Roman Catholic with 908,744 followers in the Archdiocese of Abuja (1981) with 137 parishes under Archbishop Ignatius Ayau Kaigama (2019).[ citation needed ]
The Anglican Province of Abuja, led by Archbishop Henry Ndukuba, Primate of Nigeria (2020), also Bishop of the Diocese of Abuja (1989), also includes the Diocese of Gwagwalada led by Bishop Moses Bukpe Tabwaye (2015).[ citation needed ]
The council was elected in the 2022 Federal Capital Territory local elections. [17]
Abuja is the capital and sixth most populous city of Nigeria. Situated in the middle of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), it is a planned city built mainly in the 1980s based on a master plan by International Planning Associates (IPA), a consortium of three American planning and architecture firms made up of Wallace, Roberts, McHarg & Todd as the lead, Archi systems International, and Planning Research Corporation. The Central Business District of Abuja was designed by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange. It replaced Lagos, the country's most populous city, as the capital on 12 December 1991.
Kogi State is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the west by the states of Ekiti and Kwara, to the north by the Federal Capital Territory, to the northeast by Nasarawa State, to the northwest by Niger State, to the southwest by the Edo and Ondo states, to the southeast by the states of Anambra and Enugu, and to the east by Benue State. It is the only state in Nigeria to border ten other states. Named after the Hausa word for river (Kogi). Kogi State was formed from parts of Benue State, Niger State, and Kwara State on 27 August 1991. The state is nicknamed the "Confluence State" due to the fact that the confluence of the River Niger and the River Benue occurs next to its capital, Lokoja.
Niger is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria. It is the largest state in the country by area. The state capital is Minna. Other major cities are Bida, Kontagora and Suleja. Niger state was formed in 1976 when the then North-Western State was divided into Niger State and Sokoto State. It is home state of two former Nigerian military heads of state— Ibrahim Babangida and Abdulsalami Abubakar. The Nupe,Adara, Gbagyi, Kamuku, Kambari, Gungawa, Hun-Saare, Hausa and Koro form the majority of numerous indigenous tribes of Niger State.
Kaduna State is a state in the northwest geopolitical zone of Nigeria. The state capital is its namesake, the city of Kaduna, which was the 8th largest city in the country as of 2006. Created in 1967 as North-Central State, which also encompassed the modern Katsina State, Kaduna State achieved its current borders in 1987. Kaduna State is the fourth largest and third most populous state in the country, Kaduna State is nicknamed the Centre of Learning, owing to the presence of numerous educational institutions of importance within the state such as Ahmadu Bello University.
Nasarawa State is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the east by the states of Taraba and Plateau, to the north by Kaduna State, to the south by the states of Benue and Kogi, and to the west by the Federal Capital Territory. Named for the historic Nasarawa Emirate, the state was formed from the west of Plateau State on 1 October 1996. The state has thirteen local government areas and its capital is Lafia, located in the east of the state, while a key economic centre of the state is the Karu Urban Area—suburbs of Abuja—along the western border with the FCT.
The Gbari or Gbagyi are an ethnic group found predominantly in Central Nigeria with an estimated population of 12 million spread in four states, including Abuja, and located in thirty local government areas. It is also the name of their language. Members of the ethnic group speak two dialects. While speakers of the dialects were loosely called Gwari by both the Hausa Fulani and Europeans during pre-colonial Nigeria they prefer to be known as Gbagyi/Gbari. They live in the Niger, the Federal Capital Territory - Abuja, and Kaduna State. They are also found in Nasarawa central Nigeria Area. Gbagyi/Gbari is one of the most populated ethnic groups in the middle belt and indigenous in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria. This means Gbagyi people are the bonafide owners of the Nigerian capital city, Abuja.
Aliyu Modibbo Umar is a Nigerian technocrat who currently serves as the Special Adviser on General Duties to the Vice President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima. He previously served as the federal Minister of State for Power and Steel from December 2002 to May 2003, Minister of Commerce from July 2006 to July 2007, then Minister for the FCT, a post he held until October 2008.
Gwagwalada is a local government area in the Federal Capital Territory in Nigeria.
Arewa or Arewaland is a Hausa word which means "The North". The term is used to refer to Northern Nigeria general. The terms Arewa and Arewacin Nijeriya are used in Hausa to refer to the historic region geopolitically located north of the River Niger.
The continued use of the term, Arewa ... has conjured up an image among educated Northerners that resonated far beyond the institutional structures Sir Ahmadu Bello created: the successor to the Bornu and Sokoto Caliphate; the vision of God's Empire in the region; the universality of its claim to suzerainty; and in a more prosaic but no less powerful sense, the concept of a polity with an emphasis on unity and sense of shared purpose in northern West Africa beyond the popular slogan--'one North, one People'.
Abaji is a local government area in the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria, Abuja. The Abaji Area Council is the area council farthest from the city center and occupies approximately 1,100 square kilometers. Created in 1986, the council has a population of over 46,600 inhabitants according to a 2006 national census. As a gateway to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abaji is a fast-growing area. There is a notable influx of arrivals, many moving in search of new means of livelihood.
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) is a Nigerian ministry that administers the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria. It is headed by a Minister, who is appointed by the President, and assisted by a Permanent Secretary, who is a career civil servant.
Philips Tanimu Aduda is a Nigerian politician. He served two terms in the Nigerian House of Representatives between 2003 and 2011, and was elected to the Senate for the Abuja Federal Capital Territory in the 9 April 2011 elections, running on the People's Democratic Party (PDP) ticket.
The Karu Urban Area is an urban area in central Nigeria. The urban area is majorly located in the Nigerian state of Nasarawa, but with some parts stretching into the boundaries of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). It has an area of 40,000 hectares (400 km2) and a population of some 2 million.
Ibrahim Usman Jibril CON is a Nigerian traditional ruler and administrator. He is the 12th emir of Nasarawa Emirate and was the minister of state for environment between 2015 and 2018 in the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.
Ramatu Tijani Aliyu is a Nigerian politician from Kogi State, Nigeria. She served as the Minister of State for Federal Capital Territory (FCT) appointed by president Muhammadu Buhari on August 21, 2019. Ramatu was previously the National Woman Leader of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) later All Progressive Congress (APC) after the party and other political parties merged.
New Karshi is a town in Karu Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Nigeria, founded in the 1980s by Muhammadu Bako II. It is a semi-autonomous local government created out of Karu LGA as Karshi Development area with the administrative secretariat in Uke. Karshi has a local government chairman as its administrative head and a seat in the Nasarawa State House of Assembly. Emir of Karshi Emirate, Alhaji (Dr) Muhammadu Sani Bako III, a first class chief is the traditional head of New Karshi. It has a population of about 30,000 people. The predominant tribes are Gwandara, Gbagyi, Gade, Bassa and Hausa.
Abuja Thermal Power Station is a planned 1,350 MW natural gas-fired thermal power plant in Nigeria. It is planned as an IPP project.
Zuba is a community in Gwagwalada Local Government Area of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nigeria. It is located in the border of Abuja central city and shares the same boundary Madalla with Niger State. Other than being the gateway to Abuja, Zuba is also on a primary highway that connects to Kaduna-Kano as well Kogi State, to major cities of the south.
The 2023 Nigerian Senate election in the Federal Capital Territory will be held on 25 February 2023, to elect the single federal Senator from the Federal Capital Territory, with the senatorial district being coterminous with the Territory at-large. The election will coincide with the 2023 presidential election, as well as other elections to the Senate and elections to the House of Representatives; with state elections being held two weeks later.
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