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Cross River State is a state in the South South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named for the Cross River, the state was formed from the eastern part of the Eastern Region on 27 May 1967. Its capital is Calabar, it borders to the north by Benue State, to the west by Ebonyi State and Abia State, and to the southwest by Akwa Ibom State while its eastern border forms part of the national border with Cameroon.[3] Originally known as the South-Eastern State before being renamed in 1976, Cross River State formerly included the area that is now Akwa Ibom State, which became a distinct state in 1987.[4]

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Cross River
State
State of Cross River
Obudu mountains, a natural landscape in the Obudu Mountain Resort
Flag Seal
Nicknames:  The People's Paradise (French: Le paradis des gens)
Location of Cross River State in Nigeria
Coordinates: 5°45′N 8°30′E
Country	Nigeria
Geopolitical Zone	South South
Date created	27 May 1967
Capital	Calabar
Government
• Body	Government of Cross River State
• Governor	Benedict Ayade (APC)
• Deputy Governor	Ivara Esu (APC)
• Legislature	Cross River State House of Assembly
• Senators	C: Sandy Ojang Onor (PDP) N: Agom Jarigbe (PDP) S: Gershom Bassey (PDP)
• Representatives	List
Area
• Total	20,156 km2 (7,782 sq mi)
• Rank	19th of 36
Population  (2016)[citation needed]
• Total	3,737,517
• Rank	28th of 36
• Density	190/km2 (480/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)
• Year	2007
• Total	$15.56 billion[1]
• Per capita	$5,150[1]
Time zone	UTC+01 (WAT)
postal code	540001
Dialing Code	+234
ISO 3166 code	NG-CR
HDI (2018)	0.609[2] medium · 14th of 37
Website

Of the 36 states, Cross River is the nineteenth largest in area and 27th most populous with an estimated population of over 3.8 million as of 2016.[5] Geographically, the state is mainly divided between the Guinean forest–savanna mosaic in the far north and the Cross–Sanaga–Bioko coastal forests in the majority of the interior of the state. The smaller ecoregions are the Central African mangroves in the coastal far south and a part of the montane Cameroonian Highlands forests in the extreme northeast. The most major geographical feature is the state's namesake, the Cross River which bisects Cross River State's interior before forming much of the state's western border and flowing into the Cross River Estuary. Other important rivers are the Calabar and Great Kwa rivers which flow from the inland Oban Hills before flanking the city of Calabar and flowing into the Cross River Estuary as well. In the forested interior of the state are several biodiverse protected areas including the Cross River National Park, Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary, and Mbe Mountains Community Forest. These wildlife reserves contain populations of Preuss's red colobus, African forest buffalo, bat hawk, tree pangolin, grey-necked rockfowl, and West African slender-snouted crocodile along with some of Nigeria's last remaining Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee, drill, African forest elephant, and Cross River gorilla populations.[6][7][8][9]

Modern-day Cross River State has been inhabited by several ethnic groups for hundreds of years, primarily the Efik of the riverside south and Calabar; the Ekoi (Ejagham) of the inland south; the Akunakuna, Boki, Bahumono, and Yakö (Yakurr) of the central region; and the Bekwarra, Bette, Igede, Ukelle (Kukele) of the northern region. In the pre-colonial period, what is now Cross River State was divided between its ethnic groups with some joining the Aro Confederacy while the Efik founded the Akwa Akpa (Old Calabar) city-state.[3] The latter become a British protectorate in 1884 as the capital of the Oil Rivers Protectorate but it was not until the early 1900s that the British actually gained formal control of the entire area. Around the same time, the protectorate (now renamed the Niger Coast Protectorate) was incorporated into the Southern Nigeria Protectorate which later merged into British Nigeria.[10] After the merger, much of modern-day Cross River became a center of anti-colonial resistance during the Women's War and trade through the international seaport at Calabar.[11][12]

After independence in 1960, the area of now-Cross River was a part of the post-independence Eastern Region until 1967 when the region was split and the area became part of the South-Eastern State. Less than two months afterwards, the Igbo-majority former Eastern Region attempted to secede as the state of Biafra; in the three-year long Nigerian Civil War, Calabar and its port was hard fought over in Operation Tiger Claw while people from Cross River were persecuted by Biafran forces as they were mainly non-Igbo.[13] At the war's end and the reunification of Nigeria, the South-Eastern State was reformed until 1976 when it was renamed Cross River State.[14] Eleven years later, Cross River State was divided with western Cross River being broken off to form the new Akwa Ibom State.[4] The state formerly contained the oil-producing Bakassi Peninsula, but it was ceded to Cameroon under the terms of the Greentree Agreement.[15]

As an agricultural state, the Cross River State economy partially relies on crops, such as cocoyam, rubber, oil palm, yam, cocoa, cashews, and plantain crops along with fishing. Key minor industries involve tourism in and around the wildlife reserves along with the historic Ikom Monoliths site, Calabar Carnival, and Obudu Mountain Resort. Cross River has the joint-thirteenth highest Human Development Index in the country and numerous institutions of tertiary education.^{[citation needed]}[16]

Geography

Cross River State derives its name from the Cross River which passes through the state.[17] It is a coastal state located in the Niger Delta region, and occupies 20,156 square kilometers. It shares boundaries with Benue State to the north, Ebonyi and Abia States to the west, to the east by Sud-Ouest Province in Cameroon, and to the south by Akwa-Ibom and the Atlantic Ocean.[18] The state is made up of 18 Local Government Councils.

History

The South-South State was created on 27 May 1967 from the former Eastern Region, Nigeria by the General Yakubu Gowon regime. Its name was changed to Cross River State in the 1976 state creation exercise by the then General Murtala Mohammed regime from South Eastern State.[19]^: 222The present day Akwa Ibom State was excised from it in the state creation exercise of September 1987 by the then regime of General Ibrahim Babangida.[20] The struggle for a new state creation started in 1980 in the reign of president shehu shagari where Senator Joseph Oqua Ansa (Mon) the senator representing Calabar senatorial district then was at the helm of affairs. Its capital is Calabar. Its major towns are Calabar Municipality, Akamkpa, Biase, Calabar South, Ikom, Igede, Obubra, Odukpani, Ogoja, Bekwarra, Ugep, Obudu, Obanliku, Akpabuyo, Ofutop, Iso-bendghe, Danare, Boki, Yala, Bendeghe Ekiem, Etomi, Ediba, Itigidi, Ugep, Ukpe and Ukelle.[21]

The state has been previously governed by many governors and administrators including Udoakaha J. Esuene, Paul Omu, Tunde Elegbede, Clement Isong, Donald Etiebet, Daniel Archibong, Ibim Princewill, Ernest Atta, Clement Ebri, Ibrahim Kefas, Gregory Agboneni, Umar Faoruk Ahmed, Christopher Osondu, Donald Duke, Liyel Imoke and Benedict Ayade. The Current Governor is Benedict Ayade, who was sworn into office on 29 May 2015. He was re-elected for a second term in office in 2019 under the platform of The People's Democratic Party.

Demographics

The State is composed of several ethnic groups,[22][23] which include the Efik, the Ejagham, Yakurr, Bahumono, Bette, Yala, Igede, Ukelle and the Bekwarra among others. There are four major languages spoken in the state: French, Efik, Bekwarra, and Ejagham. The Efik language is widely spoken in Cross River State, especially in Calabar Municipality, Calabar South, Akpabuyo, Bakassi, Akampkpa, Biase, and Odukpani Local Government Areas. The Ejagham language is also widely spoken language in Cross River State.

The Efik-speaking people live mainly in the Southern senatorial districts of Cross River, or as it is commonly referred to, the Greater Calabar district, which includes Calabar Municipality, Calabar South, Bakassi, Biase, Akpabuyo, Odukpani, and Akamkpa LGAs. There is also the Qua community in Calabar, which speaks Ejagham. The main Ejagham group occupies mostly the Greater Calabar areas of Calabar Municipality, Odukpani, Biase and Akampkpa sections of Cross River State.

There are also the Yakurr /Agoi/Bahumono ethnic groups in Yakurr and Abi LGA, while the Mbembe are predominantly found in Obubra LGA. Further up the core northern part of the state are several sub-dialectical groups, among which are Etung, Olulumo, Ofutop, Nkim/Nkum, Abanajum, Nseke and Boki in both Ikom, Etung and Boki LGAs. Also, the Yala/Yache, Igede, Ukelle, Ekajuk, Mbube, Bette, Bekwarra and Utukwang people are found in Ogoja, Yala, Obudu and Obanliku and Bekwarra LGA's. The Yala are a subgroup of the Idoma nation, part of the Yala LGA's subgroups are the Igede speaking people believed to have migrated from the Oju part of Benue State, who migrated from Ora, in Edo North.

In Cross River North, Bekwarra is one of the most widely spoken language.[24] It is understood by other tribes in the district. This language along with Efik and Ejagham is used for news broadcast in the state owned radio and TV stations.

Cross River State epitomises the nation's linguistic and cultural plurality and it is important to note that, in spite of the diversity of dialects, all the indigenous languages in the state have common linguistic roots as Niger–Congo languages. Finally, the State serves as the venue of the largest carnival in Africa.[25][26]

Local Government Areas

Cross River State consists of eighteen (18) Local Government Areas. They are:

Languages

Languages of Cross River State listed by LGA includes :[27]

LGA	Languages
Abi	Agwagwune; Humono; Ikwo-Igbo
Akamkpa	Agoi; Bakpinka; Doko-Uyanga; Efik; Lubila; Nkukoli; Ukpet-Ehom; Ejagham; Kiong; Korop; Ubaghara; Ukwa; Umon
Bekwarra	Bekwarra; Tiv; Utugwang-Irungene-Afrike
Biase	Agwagwune; Efik; Ubaghara; Ukwa;Umon
Boki	Bete-Bendi; Bokyi
Calabar	Efik; Ejagham
Ikom	Efik; Ejagham; Abanyom; Bukpe; Efutop; Mbembe,; Nde-Nsele-Nta; Ndoe; Nkukoli; Nnam; Olulumo-Ikom; Yala
Obanliku	Bete-Bendi; Evant; Iceve-Maci; Obanliku; Otank; Tiv
Obubra	Agoi; Hohumono; Legbo; Lenyima; Leyigha; Lokaa; Mbembe; Nkukoli; Yala; Ikwo-Igbo
Obudu	Bete-Bendi; Bukpe; Bumaji; Elege; Tiv; Ubang; Utugwang-Irungene-Afrike; Efik
Odukpani	Efik; Ejagham; Idere; Kiong; Korop; Odut; Usaghade
Ogoja	Ekajuk; Igede; Kukele; Mbe; Nkem-Nkum; Nnam; Utugwang-Irungene-Afrike; Uzekwe; Efik
Yakurr	Lokaah; Agoi, Asiga
Yala	Izii-Igbo; Mbembe; Igede; Yace; Yala; Kukelle

Other languages spoken in Cross State are Eki, Ibibio, Ilue, Ito, and Okobo.[27][28]

Festivals

Festivals held in Cross River state includes:

• The Cross River State Christmas Festival – 1 December to 31 December annually[29]
• The Cross River State Carnival Float – 26 and 27 December yearly
• The Yakurr Leboku Yam festival – 28 August annually
• The Calabar Boat Regata
• Anong Bahumono Festival which is held in Anong Village, during which different cultural dances are showcased, including Ikpobin (acclaimed to be the most entertaining dance in the state), Ekoi, Obam, Emukei and Eta[30]
• Ediba Bahumono Festival which is held in Ediba Village every last Saturday in the month of July
• Bekwarra, Obudu, Obanliku, Igede New yam festival which is held every 1st Saturday of September every year.

Tourism

From the soaring plateaus of the mountain tops of Obanliku to the Rain forests of Afi, from the Waterfalls of Agbokim and Kwa to the spiralling ox-bow Calabar River which provides sights and images of the Tinapa Business Resort, Calabar Marina, Calabar Residency Museum and the Calabar Slave Park along its course, there is always a thrilling adventure awaiting the eco-tourist visiting Cross River State.[31]

Other tourist attractions are the Ikom Monoliths (a series of volcanic-stone monoliths of unknown age), the Mary Slessor Tomb, Calabar Drill Monkey Sanctuary, Cross River National Park, Afi Mountain walkway canopy, Kwa falls, Agbokim waterfalls, Tinapa Business Resort, Mono rail way and the annual Calabar Carnival that takes place during the Christmas period.

Cross River State can be accessed by air through the Margaret Ekpo International Airport at Calabar. There are daily flights to Calabar from Lagos and Abuja serviced by airlines such as Air peace Airlines, Ibom Air Airlines and recently Cally Air, operated by Aero Contractors which worked for about 5 months in 2021 and at the start of 2022, it stopped operation. Reason is still unknown.

Education

Education started with mother tongue education. Presently, a lot of schools in the state for educative learning in the society.[32] The Tertiary educational institutions in the State includes:

• University of Calabar,
• Cross River State University of Technology
• College of Health Technology, Calabar
• Ibrahim Babangida College of Agriculture, Obubra
• Cross River State College of Education located, Akamkpa
• Federal College of Education, Obudu[33]
• Technical College Ugep, Yakurr
• Arthur Jarvis University, Akpabuyo[34]

See also

• Tinapa Resort
• Akwa Akpa
• Cross River language

References

External links

• Cross River State Government website
• http://crossriverwatch.com/?p=25473

На других языках

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- [en] Cross River State

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[ru] Кросс-Ривер

Кросс-Ривер (англ. Cross River) — федеральный штат в Нигерии. Название берёт начало от реки Кросс. Административный центр Кросс-Ривера — город Калабар.

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