Nigeria
CategoryFederation
LocationNigeria
Number36
Populations1,704,358 (Bayelsa State) – 9,401,288 (Lagos State)
Mean: 5,300,000
Areas3,580 km2 (1,381 sq mi) (Lagos State) – 76,360 km2 (29,484 sq mi) (Niger State)
Mean: 25,660 km2 (9,907 sq mi)
Government
Subdivisions

Nigeria is a federation of 36 states. Each of the 36 states is a semi-autonomous political unit that shares powers with the federal government as enumerated under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Federal Capital Territory (FCT), is the capital territory of Nigeria, and it is in this territory that the capital city of Abuja is located.[1] The FCT is not a state. It is a territory of the Federal Government, administered by Ministers of Government appointed by the President who supervises by the administration of the territory. Each state is subdivided into local government areas (LGAs). There are 774 local governments in Nigeria.[2] Under the constitution, the 36 states are co-equal but not supreme because sovereignty resides with the federal government. The constitution can be amended by the National Assembly, but each amendment must be ratified by two-thirds of the 36 states of the federation.

Current states and the Federal Capital Territory

A clickable map of Nigeria showing its 36 states and the federal capital territory.
A clickable map of Nigeria exhibiting its 36 states and the federal capital territory.
A clickable map of Nigeria exhibiting its 36 states and the federal capital territory.
States
Territory
Federal Capital Territory


States of Nigeria
Name ISO
3166-2
code		 Seal Location City Geopolitical
zone		 Area Population
(2019
estimate)[3]
Capital Largest
Abia AB Umuahia Aba South East 6,320 km2 (2,440 sq mi) 3,841,943
Adamawa AD Yola North East 36,917 km2 (14,254 sq mi) 4,536,948
Akwa Ibom AK Uyo South South 7,081 km2 (2,734 sq mi) 4,780,581
Anambra AN
Link		 Awka Onitsha South East 4,844 km2 (1,870 sq mi) 5,599,910
Bauchi BA Bauchi North East 45,893 km2 (17,719 sq mi) 7,540,663
Bayelsa BY
Link		 Yenagoa South South 10,773 km2 (4,159 sq mi) 2,394,725
Benue BE Makurdi North Central 34,059 km2 (13,150 sq mi) 5,787,706
Borno BO Maiduguri North East 70,898 km2 (27,374 sq mi) 5,751,590
Cross River CR Calabar South South 20,156 km2 (7,782 sq mi) 4,175,020
Delta DE
Link		 Asaba South South 17,698 km2 (6,833 sq mi) 5,307,543
Ebonyi EB Abakaliki South East 6,400 km2 (2,500 sq mi) 3,007,155
Edo ED Benin City South South 19,559 km2 (7,552 sq mi) 4,461,137
Ekiti EK
Link		 Ado Ekiti South West 6,353 km2 (2,453 sq mi) 3,350,401
Enugu EN Enugu South East 13,161 km2 (5,081 sq mi) 4,396,098
Gombe GO
Link		 Gombe North East 18,768 km2 (7,246 sq mi) 3,623,462
Imo IM Owerri South East 5,530 km2 (2,140 sq mi) 5,167,722
Jigawa JI Dutse North West 23,154 km2 (8,940 sq mi) 6,779,080
Kaduna KD
Link		 Kaduna North West 46,053 km2 (17,781 sq mi) 8,324,285
Kano KN Kano North West 20,131 km2 (7,773 sq mi) 14,253,549
Katsina KT
Link		 Katsina North West 24,192 km2 (9,341 sq mi) 9,300,382
Kebbi KE Birnin Kebbi North West 36,800 km2 (14,200 sq mi) 5,001,610
Kogi KO
Link		 Lokoja North Central 29,833 km2 (11,519 sq mi) 4,153,734
Kwara KW
Link		 Ilorin North Central 36,825 km2 (14,218 sq mi) 3,259,613
Lagos LA Ikeja Lagos South West 3,577 km2 (1,381 sq mi) 12,772,884
Nasarawa NA Lafia North Central 26,256 km2 (10,137 sq mi) 2,632,239
Niger NI
Link		 Minna North Central 76,363 km2 (29,484 sq mi) 6,220,617
Ogun OG
Link		 Abeokuta South West 16,981 km2 (6,556 sq mi) 5,945,275
Ondo ON Akure South West 15,500 km2 (6,000 sq mi) 4,969,707
Osun OS
Link		 Osogbo South West 9,251 km2 (3,572 sq mi) 4,237,396
Oyo OY Ibadan South West 28,454 km2 (10,986 sq mi) 7,512,855
Plateau PL Jos North Central 30,913 km2 (11,936 sq mi) 4,400,974
Rivers RI
Link		 Port Harcourt South South 11,077 km2 (4,277 sq mi) 7,034,973
Sokoto SO
Link		 Sokoto North West 25,973 km2 (10,028 sq mi) 5,863,187
Taraba TA Jalingo North East 54,473 km2 (21,032 sq mi) 3,331,885
Yobe YO Damaturu Potiskum North East 45,502 km2 (17,568 sq mi) 3,398,177
Zamfara ZA Gusau North West 39,762 km2 (15,352 sq mi) 5,317,793

Evolution of Nigerian states

DateEventsMap
1960–1963At the time of independence in 1960, Nigeria was a federal state of three regions: Northern, Western, and Eastern. Additionally, provinces, which were a legacy of colonial and protectorate times, remained extant until they were abolished in 1976.
1963–1967In 1963, a new region, the Mid-Western Region, was created from the Western Region.
1967–1976In 1967, the regions were replaced by 12 states by military decree. From 1967 to 1970 the Eastern Region attempted to secede, as a nation called Biafra during the Nigerian civil war.
1976–1987In 1976, seven new states were created, making 19 altogether.[4]
1987–1991During this period, there were 21 states and the Federal Capital Territory.
1991–1996During this period, there were 30 states and the Federal Capital Territory. The Federal Capital Territory was established in 1991. In 1987 two new states were established, followed by another nine in 1991, bringing the total to 30. The latest change, in 1996, resulted in the present number of 36 states.

Government

States of Nigeria have the right to organize and structure their individual governments in any way within the parameters set by the Constitution of Nigeria.

Legislature

At the state level, the legislature is unicameral, with the number of its members equal to three times the number of legislators it has in the Federal House of Representatives. It has the power to legislate on matters on the concurrent list.

Executive

At the state level, the head of the executive is the governor, who has the power to appoint people to the state executive council, subject to the advice and consent of the state house of assembly (legislature). The head of a ministry at the state level is the commissioner, who is assisted by a permanent secretary, who is also a senior civil servant of the state.

Judiciary

The Judiciary is one of the co-equal arms of the state government concerned with the interpretation of the laws of the state government. The judiciary is headed by the chief justice of the state appointed by the governor subject to the approval of the state house of assembly.[5]

Chronology

Regions States
1960 1963 1967 1976 1987 1991 1996
Eastern South-Eastern Cross River Akwa Ibom
Cross River
East Central Imo Imo
Abia
Ebonyi
Anambra Enugu
Enugu
Anambra
Rivers Bayelsa
Rivers
Western Mid-Western Bendel Delta
Edo
Western Lagos
Western Ogun
Ondo Ekiti
Ondo
Oyo Osun
Oyo
Northern Benue-Plateau Plateau Nasarawa
Plateau
Benue Benue
Kogi
Kwara
Kwara
Kano Jigawa
Kano
North Central Kaduna Kaduna
Katsina
North Western Niger
Sokoto Kebbi
Sokoto Sokoto
Zamfara
North Eastern Bauchi Bauchi
Gombe
Borno Borno
Yobe
Gongola Adamawa
Taraba

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ "Federal Capital Territory (FCT) | Location & Geography | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2023-06-07.
  2. ↑ "USAID Nigeria mission: Nigeria administrative divisions" Archived 2007-01-13 at the Wayback Machine United States Agency for International Development, October 2004, last accessed 21 April 2010
  3. ↑ Demographic Statistics Bulletin 2020
  4. ↑ Kraxberger, Brennan (2005) "Strangers, Indigenes and Settlers: Contested Geographies of Citizenship in Nigeria" Space and Polity 9(1): pp. 9–27, pages 10, 11, & 15
  5. ↑ Shetreet, Shimon; Deschênes, Jules (1985-01-01). Judicial Independence: The Contemporary Debate. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. ISBN 978-90-247-3182-4.

Sources

  • Gboyega Ajayi (2007). The military and the Nigerian state, 1966–1993: a study of the strategies of political power control. Trenton, New Jersey: Africa World Press. ISBN 978-1-59221-568-3.
  • Solomon Akhere Benjamin (1999). The 1996 state and local government reorganizations in Nigeria. Ibadan: Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research. ISBN 978-181-238-9.
  • Rotimi T. Suberu (1994). 1991 state and local government reorganizations in Nigeria. Ibadan: Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan. ISBN 978-2015-28-8.

States And Capital In Nigeria, Their Slogans & Current Governors A comprehensive list of all states in Nigeria and their current governors.

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