The South South (often hyphenated to South-South) is one of the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. It designates both a geographic and political region of the country's eastern coast. It comprises six states – Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, and Rivers.
South South | |
|---|---|
From top, left to right: Ibeno Beach, Ososo Hills, River Niger Bridge, Cross River National Park, Yenagoa, Bonny Island | |
| Country |  Nigeria |
| States | |
| Largest city | Port Harcourt |
| Major cities | |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (WAT) |
| Major languages | |
The zone stretches along the Atlantic seaboard from the Bight of Benin coast in the west to the Bight of Bonny coast in the east. It encloses much of the Niger Delta, which is instrumental in the environment and economic development of the region. Geographically, the zone is divided with the Central African mangroves in the coastal far south while the major inland ecoregions are–from east to west–the Cross–Sanaga–Bioko coastal forests, Cross–Niger transition forests, Niger Delta swamp forests, and Nigerian lowland forests.
Although the South South represents only ~5% of Nigerian territory, it contributes greatly to the Nigerian economy due to extensive oil and natural gas reserves. The zone has a population of about 26 million people, around 12% of the total population of the country. Port Harcourt and Benin City are the most populous cities in the South-South, and the fourth- and fifth-most populous cities, respectively, in the country. Port Harcourt and its suburbs, together called Greater Port Harcourt, form the largest metropolitan area in the zone, with about 3 million people. Other large South-South cities include (in descending order by population) Warri/Uvwie, Calabar, Uyo, Ikot Ekpene, Ugep, Sapele, Buguma, Uromi, Ughelli, Ikom, and Asaba.[1]
History
The South-South Region was created from parts of both the Western and Eastern regions of Nigeria in 1997 through the recommendation of the Alex Ekwueme panel, by the national regime of General Sani Abacha.
Edo, Delta, one quarter of Bayelsa, and the Ndoni section of Rivers states were from the old Western region. Three-quarters of the area of Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states were from the old Eastern region.
Demographics
Languages
Administration
Regional development authorities
On a federal level, the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and its parastatal — the Niger Delta Development Commission — cover the South-South in addition to three other oil-producing states (Abia, Imo, and Ondo). Unlike the development authorities of other zones like the North-East Development Commission, the present authorities are responsible for the areas outside of the South-South as the NDDC was created in response to protests and conflict in the wider Niger Delta region. Nonetheless, the creation of a South-South Development Commission has been repeatedly proposed by some lawmakers in the late 2010s and 2020s, with proponents advocating fairness with the other zones' commissions while opponents deride the proposal as redundant.[2][3] The remit of the current development agencies includes ecological protection and infrastructure development; however, both the ministry and commission have long been beset by corruption and mismanagement that has led to the abandonment or failure of many projects.[4][5][6][7][8]
States and local government areas
| Name | Code | Seal | Location | City | Local government areas | Area | Population (2019 estimate)[9] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital | Largest | |||||||
| Akwa Ibom | AK | 
|
|
Uyo | 31 | 7,081 km2 (2,734 sq mi) | 4,780,581 | |
| Bayelsa | BY | 
|
Yenagoa | 8 | 10,773 km2 (4,159 sq mi) | 2,394,725 | ||
| Cross River | CR | 
|
|
Calabar | 18 | 20,156 km2 (7,782 sq mi) | 4,175,020 | |
| Delta | DE | 
|
Asaba | 25 | 17,698 km2 (6,833 sq mi) | 5,307,543 | ||
| Edo | ED | 
|
|
Benin City | 18 | 19,559 km2 (7,552 sq mi) | 4,461,137 | |
| Rivers | RI | 
|
Port Harcourt | 23 | 11,077 km2 (4,277 sq mi) | 7,034,973 | ||
References
- ^ "Population of Cities in Nigeria (2022)". World Population Review. Retrieved 11 May 2022.
- ^ Baiyewu, Leke (18 November 2021). "Despite NDDC, Reps pass bill creating South-South commission". The Punch. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ "Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong pushes bill for creation of South South development commission". The Guardian. 25 February 2024. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ Akinyoade, Demola (March 2017). "Doing Both Harm and Good: The Nature, Dynamics and Implications of the Niger Delta Development Commission's (NDDC) Interventions in Odi, Bayelsa State, Nigeria". India Quarterly: A Journal of International Affairs. 73 (1): 53–76. doi:10.1177/0974928416683057. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ Ushie, Ekwuore Monday; Okpa, John Thompson (2021). "Corruption and the development debacle in the Niger Delta region". Corruption and Development in Nigeria. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-003-17863-7. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ "Grand corruption wrecks Niger delta clean-up". Africa Confidential. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ Igwe, Uche (22 November 2022). "Corruption and mismanagement may derail cleanup of Niger Delta". Africa at LSE. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ Adeleke, Gabriel Osuolale (April 2022). "National Question and Systemic Corruption in the Control of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC)" (PDF). International Journal of Advanced Academic Research. 8 (4): 33–43. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- ^ Demographic Statistics Bulletin 2020
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