Delta State, Nigeria
| Delta State | |
|---|---|
| State | |
| Nickname(s): The Big Heart of the Nation | |
 Location of Delta State in Nigeria |
|
| Coordinates: 5°30′N 6°00′E / 5.500°N 6.000°ECoordinates: 5°30′N 6°00′E / 5.500°N 6.000°E | |
| Country | Nigeria |
| Date created | 27 August 1991 |
| Capital | Asaba |
| Government | |
| • Governor (List) |
Arthur Okowa Ifeanyi (PDP) |
| • Deputy Governor | Kingsley Otuaro |
| Area | |
| • Total | 17,698 km2 (6,833 sq mi) |
| Area rank | 23rd of 36 |
| Population (1991 census) | |
| • Total | 2,570,181 |
| • Estimate (2005) | 4,098,391 |
| • Rank | 9th of 36 |
| • Density | 150/km2 (380/sq mi) |
| Demonym(s) | Deltan |
| GDP (PPP) | |
| • Year | 2007 |
| • Total | $16.75 billion |
| • Per capita | $3,990 |
| Time zone | WAT (UTC+01) |
| ISO 3166 code | NG-DE |
| Website | www.deltastate.gov.ng |
Delta or Delta State is an oil and agricultural producing state of Nigeria, situated in the region known as the South-South geo-political zone with a population of 4,098,291 (males: 2,674,306; females: 2,024,085). The capital city is Asaba, located at the northern end of the state, with an estimated area of 762 square kilometres (294 sq mi), while Warri is the economic nerve center of the state and also the most populated located in the southern end of the state. The state has a total land area of 16,842 square kilometres (6,503 sq mi).
The state covers a landmass of about 18,050 km², of which more than 60% is land. The state lies approximately between Longitude 5°00 and 6°.45' East and Latitude 5°00 and 6°.30' North. It is bounded in the north and west by Edo State, the east by Anambra, Imo, and Rivers States, southeast by Bayelsa State, and on the southern flank is the Bight of Benin which covers about 160 kilometres of the state's coastline. Delta State is generally low-lying without remarkable hills. The state has a wide coastal belt inter-lace with rivulets and streams, which form part of the Niger Delta.
Delta State was carved out of the former Bendel State on August 27, 1991. The state was created following agitations for the creation of a separate distinct state by the peoples of the old Delta Province: the Urhobos, Itsekiri, Isoko, Ijaw (Ezon) and Ukwuani (later joined Anioma). There was yet another state creation movement designated as "Niger State" comprising the old midwestern Igbo-speaking Asaba divisions and Ukwuani-speaking Aboh division of the old Midwest region. This was transformed into "Anioma" following the creation of Niger State from the old Northwestern State by the Murtala Muhammed's administration in 1976. The then Military President, Gen Ibrahim Babangida (Rtd) created the state using the name "Delta" advanced by Niger Delta region and "Asaba" a prominent town within the "Anioma" axis as capital. Asaba was designated as capital of the proposed Anioma State. The proposed capital was a virgin land or "Anioma city" in the heart of the two constituent divisions that had evolved to become the Anioma area. Delta state was once integrated in the Mid Western state from 1963 to 1976 and later Bendel state, from 1976 to 1991. The name "Bendel" (Ben-Del) coined from the old Benin and Delta Provinces of Western Region-Delta to reflect the integration of Benin and Delta provinces.
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