Governor
Aliyu Modibbo Umar
Capital
Abuja
Main Cities and Towns
Abuja
Population
1 405 201
- Opportunity to invest in ICT expansion programme
- Transcorp Hilton: Serving Abuja's business travellers
- Five on Friday: Abuja transforming itself into business capital
- Five on Friday: Property sector 'heading in right direction'
- World renowned architecture firm heads to Abuja
- Five on Friday: Chamber boss shares his wisdom
- Foreign investors keen on Nigeria's power sector
- Private sector to control power industry
- SA's standard bank eyes Nigeria's retail banks
- FEC approves funds for Abuja airport runway
- Abuja rental prices skyrocket
- West & Central AfricaCom
- West Africa Investment Forum 2008
- Nigeria Gas 2008 (this event has been cancelled)
- Pharma West Africa 2008
- Ai Nigeria Infrastructure Investor Projects Summit
The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is the home of Abuja, the capital of Nigeria. The region is located just north of the confluence of the Niger and Benue rivers. It is bordered by the states of Niger to the west and northeast, Kaduna to the northeast, Plateau to the east and south, and Kogi to the southwest.
Abuja is a 'planned' city, as it was mainly built in the 1980s and officially became Nigeria's capital in 1991. It is known for being the best purpose built city in Africa as well as being one of the wealthiest and most expensive; however, the population on the semi-developed edges of the city is living in shanty towns such as Karu. Abuja and the FCT have experienced huge population growth of between 20% and 30% in recent years.
In addition to being a major governmental centre, Abuja is the headquarters of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), as well as its military arm, ECOMOG. It also has the regional headquarters of OPEC. Abuja is bidding head to head with Glasgow to host the Commonwealth Games in 2014. If successful, Abuja would become the first African city to host the event. The city is served by the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.
The area designated the FCT falls within the Savanna Zone vegetation of the West African sub-region. Patches of rain forest, however, occur in the Gwagwa plains. A mix of agricultural produce such as yam, cassava, maize sorghum, guinea corn and rice are found in the region. The FCT also has proven deposits of a wide range of mineral resources including marble, tin, mica, clay, wolfromite, tantalite and talc.
The very character of Abuja has been shaped by the two renowned rock formations around it - the Zuma Rock and the Aso Rock. The former is referred to as the 'Gateway to Abuja' and the FCT begins at its base. Other tourist attractions in the capital are the National Mosque, the National Church, Parade Square and the Wuse Market. The city is often used as a jumping-off point for visitors wanting to explore the rest of Nigeria and most travelers don't stay too long. Perhaps future growth will position Abuja as an attraction in its own right.
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