HISTORY AND FACTS ABOUT IMO STATE Imo State State Nickname(s): Eastern Heartland Location of Imo State in Nigeria Coordinates: 5°29′N 7°2′E / 5.483°N 7.033°E Country Nigeria Date createdFebruary 3, 1976 Capital Owerri Government • Governor Rochas Anayo Okorocha( APGA) Area • Total 5,530 km2(2,140 sq mi) Area rank 34th of 36 Population(2006 census) [ 1 ] 1 • Total 3,934,899 • Rank 13th of 36 • Density 710/km2(1,800/sq mi) GDP (PPP) • Year 2007 • Total $14.21 billion [ 2 ] • Per capita $3,527 [ 2 ] Time zone WAT( UTC+01) ISO 3166 code NG-IM ^1Preliminary results Imo Stateis one of the 36 statesof Nigeriaand lies in the south eastern of Nigeria with Owerrias its capital and largest city. History Imo State came into existence in 1976 along with other new states created under the leadership of the late military ruler of Nigeria, Murtala Muhammad, having been previously part of East-Central State. The state is named after the Imo River. [ 3 ]Part of it was split off in 1991 as Abia State, and another part became Ebonyi State. The main cities in Imo State are Owerri, Orlu and Okigwe. TheOrashi Riverhas its source in this state. The local language is Igbo and Christianity is the predominant religion. Imo state was created at Ngwoma. Geography and natural resources Imo State lies within latitudes 4°45N and 7°15N, and longitude 6°50E and 7°25E with an area of around 5,100 sq km. [ 4 ]It is bordered by Abia Stateon the East, by the River Nigerand Delta Stateon the west, by Anambra Stateto the north and Rivers Stateto the south. Besides Owerri, Imo States major towns are Isu, Okigwe, Oguta, Orlu, Mbaise,Mbano, Mbaitoli, Mbieri, Orodo, Nkwerreand Orsu. The state is rich in natural resources including crude oil, natural gas, lead, zinc. [ 5 ]Economically exploitable flora like the iroko, mahogany, obeche, bamboo, rubber treeand oil palmpredominate. However with a high population density and over farming the soil has been degraded and much of the native vegetation has disappeared. [ 4 ] This deforestation has triggered soil erosionwhich is compounded by heavy seasonal rainfall that has led to the destruction of houses and roads. [ 4 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] Climate The rainy season begins in April and lasts until October [ 8 ]with annual rainfall varying from 1,500mm to 2,200mm (60 to 80 inches). [ 4 ] [ 9 ] An average annual temperature above 20 °C (68.0 °F) creates an annual relative humidity of 75%. With humidity reaching 90% in the rainy season. The dry season experiences two months of Harmattan from late December to late February. The hottest months are between January and March. [ 4 ] [ 8 ] [ 9 ] Government The state has a three tier administrative structure: State, Local and Autonomous community levels. The three arms at state level are the Executive, the Legislative and the Judiciary. The executive arm is headed by an elected Governor who is assisted by a deputy governor, commissioners and executive advisers. The legislative arm is headed by the Speaker of the State House of Assembly who is currently speaker Rt. Hon.Benjamin Uwajumogu. The remainder of the house is made up of elected legislators and is the lawmaking body of the state. The judiciary is made up of the high court of justice and customary court of appeal and is headed by the Chief Judge of the state. [ 10 ] Ministries *.Justice *.Agriculture and Natural Resources *.Education *.Health *.Commerce *.Industry and Tourism *.Finance *.Works and Transport Language English, Igbo Local Government Areas Imo State is made up of twenty-seven Local Government Areas: *. Aboh Mbaise *. Ahiazu Mbaise *. Ehime Mbano *. Ezinihitte *. Ideato North *. Ideato South *. Ihitte/Uboma *. Ikeduru *. Isiala Mbano *. Isu *. Mbaitoli *. Ngor Okpala *. Njaba *. Nkwerre *. Nwangele *. Obowo *. Oguta *. Ohaji/Egbema *. Okigwe *. Onuimo *. Orlu *. Orsu *. Oru East *. Oru West *. Owerri Municipal *. Owerri North *. Owerri West Demographics The estimated population is 4.8 million and the population density varies from 230-1,400 people per square kilometer. [ 4 ] Imo state is a predominantly Igbospeaking state, with Igbo peopleconstituting a majority of 98%. [ 11 ]
Posted on: Mon, 03 Feb 2014 18:28:22 +0000