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| Southern Nigeria | |
|---|---|
| Name | Southern Nigeria |
| Settlement type | Region |
| Coordinates | 6°N 6°E |
| Area km2 | 150000 |
| Population | 60,000,000 |
| Subdivision type | Country |
| Subdivision name | Nigeria |
| Capital | Lagos |
Southern Nigeria is the southern region of Nigeria encompassing coastal plains, river deltas, and parts of the Niger Delta and Bight of Benin. It includes megacities, oil-producing areas, major ports and cultural centers that link Lagos, Port Harcourt, Benin City, Calabar, and Enugu to regional and global networks. The region's geography, colonial history, ethnic diversity, energy resources, and transport arteries have shaped its contemporary politics, society, and urbanization.
Southern Nigeria occupies the coastal and rainforest zones of Nigeria bordering the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Guinea. Key geographic features include the Niger Delta, the Cross River basin, the Benin River, and coastal lagoons such as the Lekki Lagoon and Calabar River. Vegetation transitions from Mangrove swamps along the coast to tropical rainforests and derived savanna inland near Jos Plateau foothills. Important conservation sites include the Cross River National Park, Okomu National Park, and remnants of the Afromontane flora on higher ground. Climatic influences derive from the Guinea Current, the Intertropical Convergence Zone, and monsoonal rainfall patterns that create wet and dry seasons affecting riverine flooding and mangrove ecology.
The region was home to precolonial polities such as the Oyo Empire, the Benin Empire, the Igbo city-states, the Itsekiri kingdoms, and the Ijaw communities, interacting through trade routes, warfare, and diplomacy. European contact appears in records of the Transatlantic slave trade, with forts and factories at Badagry, Bonny and Calabar linked to merchants from Portugal, Britain, Netherlands, and France. Colonial consolidation followed treaties like the Lagos Treaty and the establishment of the Oil Rivers Protectorate and later the Southern Nigeria Protectorate, culminating in the amalgamation that formed modern Nigeria under British Empire administration. Postcolonial conflicts and developments include the Nigerian Civil War (also known as the Biafran War), resource disputes in the Niger Delta, and urban transformations tied to oil booms and structural adjustment policies.
The population comprises major groups such as the Yoruba in the west, the Igbo in the southeast, the Edo in the Benin region, and coastal peoples including the Ijaw, Efik, Urhobo, Itsekiri, and Ijebu. Cities host migrant communities from Hausa–Fulani areas and West African neighbors like Ghana and Benin (country), leading to multiethnic urban landscapes in Lagos, Port Harcourt, and Warri. Languages include varieties of Yoruba language, Igbo language, Edo language, Ijaw languages, and Pidgin English as a lingua franca, with religious adherence spanning Christianity in Nigeria, Islam in Nigeria, and traditional belief systems connected to groups such as the Ogboni and Ekpe societies. Demographic pressures shape housing, informal settlements, and peri-urban growth around municipal centers like Abeokuta, Uyo, and Onitsha.
Southern Nigeria is central to Nigeria’s petroleum industry, hosting offshore and onshore facilities operated by firms such as Shell plc, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies. The Niger Delta supplies most national crude through pipelines and terminals at Bonny and Forcados connected to the Transnational pipeline network. Agriculture remains significant with cash crops like cocoa and oil palm grown historically in regions tied to merchants from Liverpool and Hamburg trade networks. Other resources include natural gas, mangrove timber, and fisheries in the Bight of Biafra and Bight of Benin. Industrial clusters include petrochemical complexes in Port Harcourt, manufacturing in Lagos State, and refining proposals linked to the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation. Economic challenges stem from environmental degradation from oil spills, legal actions involving United Nations frameworks, litigation against corporations in courts such as the European Court of Human Rights and US District Court precedents, and policy reforms under administrations of leaders like Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan.
Administrative divisions follow Nigerian states including Lagos State, Rivers State, Cross River State, Delta State, Edo State, Akwa Ibom State, Anambra State, Enugu State, and Imo State, each with elected governors, state legislatures, and local government areas interacting with the Federal Republic of Nigeria constitution. Political dynamics have been influenced by parties such as the All Progressives Congress and the People's Democratic Party, as well as militant and civil society movements like Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People and Niger Delta Avengers that have pressured national policy on resource control. International diplomacy engages institutions such as the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States, and bilateral partners including United Kingdom and United States stakeholders in energy and security.
Southern Nigeria hosts rich cultural expressions in music genres like Afrobeats, Highlife, and Nigerian hip hop from artists associated with labels and venues in Lagos Island and Victoria Island. Literary traditions include figures tied to publications revealing narratives of colonialism and modernity with links to Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, and contemporary writers centered in universities such as University of Lagos and University of Ibadan. Festivals include Eyo Festival in Lagos, the New Yam Festival among Igbo communities, and the Calabar Carnival that attract tourists. Visual arts and crafts preserve techniques from the Benin Bronzes and royal court art, with museums like the National Museum, Lagos and repatriation debates involving institutions such as the British Museum and Berlin State Museums.
Transport hubs include seaports at Lagos Port Complex, Port Harcourt Port, and Onne Port, international airports like Murtala Muhammed International Airport and Port Harcourt International Airport, and rail corridors proposed under projects linked to the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation and initiatives with China Railway. Major highways connect urban centers along the Trans–West African Coastal Highway and corridors toward Abuja. Energy infrastructure includes pipelines managed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and proposed export terminals connected to international shipping lanes monitored by International Maritime Organization frameworks. Urban transit projects involve bus rapid transit systems in Lagos State and port modernization efforts tied to global shipping companies such as Maersk and Mediterranean Shipping Company.
Category:Regions of Nigeria