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 | |
|---|---|
Geopolitical zone | |
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
editThe 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.
Environment
editProtected areas
edit| Protected area | Location | Area |
|---|---|---|
| Afi Mountain Wildlife Sanctuary | Northern Cross River State | 104 km2 (40 sq mi) |
| Afi River Forest Reserve | Northern Cross River State | 312 km2 (120 sq mi) |
| Cross River National Park | Cross River State | ~4,000 km2 (~1544 sq mi) |
| Edumanom Forest Reserve | Southeastern Bayelsa State and Southwestern Rivers State | 93.24 km2 (36.00 sq mi) |
| Mbe Mountains Community Forest | Northern Cross River State | 86 km2 (33 sq mi) |
| Ohosu Game Reserve | Southern Edo State | 471 km2 (182 sq mi) |
| Okomu Forest Reserve | Southern Edo State | 1,082 km2 (418 sq mi) |
| Okomu National Park | Southern Edo State | 200 km2 (77 sq mi) |
Demographics
editLanguages
editAdministration
editRegional development authorities
editOn 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
edit| 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 | ||
Politics
editAlthough the areas that now comprise the South-South were electorally competitive during the first, second, and aborted third republics, every state in the region consistently voted for the nominees of the Peoples Democratic Party in fourth republic presidential elections from 1999 to 2019. After Olusegun Obasanjo won the South-South by substantial margins of victory in 1999 and 2003, Goodluck Jonathan — an indigene of Bayelsa State — expanded PDP margins greatly in 2011 and 2015. However, PDP margins of victory decreased in 2019, when Atiku Abubakar was the party nominee. In 2023, with Abubakar again as the PDP nominee, four South-South states broke their streaks of PDP voting — with Rivers being won by Bola Tinubu (APC) amid widespread irregularities while Cross River, Delta, and Edo voted for Peter Obi (LP).[10][11]
In presidential elections
editPresidential votes in South-South states in the Fourth Republic:
| Year | Akwa Ibom | Bayelsa | Cross River | Delta | Edo | Rivers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
| 2003 | Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
Obasanjo (PDP) |
| 2007 | N/A[a] | |||||
| 2011 | Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
| 2015 | Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
Jonathan (PDP) |
| 2019 | Abubakar (PDP) |
Abubakar (PDP) |
Abubakar (PDP) |
Abubakar (PDP) |
Abubakar (PDP) |
Abubakar (PDP) |
| 2023 | Abubakar (PDP) |
Abubakar (PDP) |
Obi (LP) |
Obi (LP) |
Obi (LP) |
Tinubu (APC) |
Notes
edit- ^ State-by-state totals were never released by the Independent National Electoral Commission in 2007 amid widespread reports of electoral irregularities and fraud.
References
edit- ^ "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
- ^ "Nigeria election: The mystery of the altered results in disputed poll". BBC. 16 May 2023. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
- ^ "Nigeria election results 2023: Up-to-date results of presidential and parliamentary races - BBC News". BBC. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
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