About Abia State, Nigeria

Abia state, nicknamed "God's Own State", was carved out of the old Imo State in in 27 August 1991  in the south eastern part of Nigeria

The capital of Abia state is Umuahia and the major commercial city is Aba. The name "Abia" is an abbreviation of four of Abia state's densely populated regions Aba, Bende, Isuikwuato, and Afikpo.


Abia State, which occupies about 6,320 square kilometres, is bounded on the north and northeast by the states of Anambra, Enugu, and Ebonyi. To the west of Abia is Imo State, to the east and southeast are Cross River State and Akwa Ibom State respectively and to the south is Rivers State. 

There are four universities in Abia state: the federal-owned Michael Okpara University of Agriculture at Umudike, the state-owned Abia State University in Uturu, and the Gregory University Uturu and Rhema University in Aba, both privately owned. The Abia State Polytechnic is also in the city of Aba.

There are two tertiary hospitals, the Federal Medical Center in Umuahia and the Abia State University Teaching Hospital in Aba, which serve as referral hospitals in the State.

Some of the economic and commercial activities in Abia state include, crude oil and gas production which contributes over 39% of the State's GDP.

The manufacturing sector include textile manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, soap, plastics, cement, footwear, and cosmetics.

With its adequate seasonal rainfall, Abia has much arable land that produces yams, maize, potatoes, rice, cashews, plantains, taro, and cassava. Oil palm is the most important cash crop in the state.

The nearest airport to Abia is Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport (Owerri Airport), an hour drive to Umuahia and Aba; and Port Harcourt International Airport, 2 hours. Akwa Ibom Airport (Akwa Ibom State) can also serve would-be visitors. The distance between Uyo (Akwa Ibom) and Umuahia (Abia) is: 73.28 kilometres (45.53 mi).

The rail transport is also another means of travel. Aba is connected to Port Harcourt by rail. The coastal parts of the State are equally accessible with boats and canoes. 

Abia State consists of seventeen (17) Local Government Areas (LGAs). They are:

Aba North
Aba South
Arochukwu
Bende
Ikwuano
Isiala Ngwa North
Isiala Ngwa South
Isuikwuato
Obi Ngwa
Ohafia
Osisioma Ngwa
Ugwunagbo
Ukwa East
Ukwa West
Umuahia North
Umuahia South
Umu Nneochi

Current top government officials in Abia state are:

Governor:               Okezie Ikpeazu
Deputy Governor:    Ude Oko Chukwu

Senators   
Enyinnaya Abaribe   (Abia South)
Theodore Orji            (Abia Central)
Mao Ohuabunwa       (Abia North)