The Slogan

The People’s Paradise

Date Of Creation

27 May 1967

Geography

Cross River State derives its name from the Cross River which passes through the state. 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. The state is made up of 18 Local Government Councils.

Brief 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. 222 The 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. 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.

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.

See Also: About The 36 States Of Nigeria
About Kwara State, Nigeria
About Abia State, Nigeria

The Local Government area

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

Abi
Akamkpa
Akpabuyo
Bekwarra
Bakassi
Biase
Boki
Calabar Municipal
Calabar South
Etung
Ikom
Obanliku
Obubra
Obudu
Odukpani
Ogoja
Yakuur
Yala

The Governor

Benedict Ayade (APC)

The Deputy governor

Ivara Esu (APC)

The Senators

C: Sandy Ojang Onor (PDP)
N: Agom Jarigbe (PDP)
S: Gershom Bassey (PDP)

Representatives

Constituency	Member
Abi/Yakurr	Alex Egbona	APC
Akamkpa/Biase	Daniel Effiong Asuquo	PDP
Akpabuyo/Bakassi/Calabar South	Essien Ayi	PDP
Calabar Municipal/Odukpani	Eta Mbora Edim	PDP
Ikom/Boki	Chris Ngoro Adigbe	PDP
Obanliku/Obudu/Bekwarra	Ochiglegor Idagbo	APC
Obubra/Etung	Michael Etaba	APC
Ogoja/Yala	Vacant

The Website

crossriverstate.gov.ng/

Major Cities

Calabar

Prominent Places

 the Mary Slessor Tomb, Calabar Drill Monkey Sanctuary, Cross River National Park, Afi Mountain walkway canopy, Kwa falls, Agbokim waterfalls, Tinapa Business Resort, 

Mineral Resources

limestone, gypsum, titanium, tin ore, ceramic raw materials, and hardstone

The population

Population (2016)
• Total 3,737,517

Postal Code

540001

Culture and 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.

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.
Festivals held in Cross River state includes:

The Cross River State Christmas Festival – 1 December to 31 December annually[23]
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
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.

Notable People

Languages

The State is composed of several ethnic groups, 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. 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.

Institutions

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[
Technical College Ugep, Yakurr
Arthur Jarvis University, Akpabuyo