About Enugu State has the basic information about the State. Vital historical and present-day verities of the State are briefly incorporated herein.
Facts About Enugu
![Basic Things to Know About Enugu State](https://i0.wp.com/i.onthe.io/smngoz2nfs3oa2fvgg.95b92ccf.jpg?resize=216%2C175&ssl=1)
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Enugu State is situated in the southeastern part of Nigeria. It was created on August 27, 1991, in part of the old Anambra state. Its state capital and largest city are Enugu where the state derives its name from.
The word Enugu is gotten from the words Enu Ugwu which means the top of the hill. The main cities in the State include Enugu, Nsukka, Agwu, and Agbani. Enugu State is nicknamed Coal City State, Wawa State. In Igbo, it is called Ọrā nke Ama ichekù.
The State is located at the foot of the Udi Plateau. It shares boundaries with Abia and Imo states to the south, Ebonyi to the east, Benue to the northeast, Kogi to the northwest, and Anambra to the west.
The State and the Local Governments are the two levels of government in the State. The present executive Governor of the state is Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. He was elected in April 2015 and sworn in on May 29, 2015, under the auspices of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is deputized by Cecilia Ezeilo.
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Local Government Areas in Enugu State
Enugu State has a total of 17 Local Government Areas as follows:
- Aninri
- Awgu
- Enugu East
- Enugu North
- Enugu South
- Ezeagu
- Igbo Etiti
- Igbo Eze North
- Igbo Eze South
- Isi Uzo
- Nkanu East
- Nkanu West
- Nsukka
- Oji River
- Udenu
- Udi
- Uzo-Uwani
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In terms of economics, the state is predominantly agrarian and rural, with a large proportion of the working population engaging in agriculture, trading, and services. Though the predominant occupation in the urban area is trading and then services.
However, a minimal proportion of the population is into manufacturing and entrepreneurial activities. Each of the divisional headquarters of the state has its commercial market, Ogbete Main market which is the most prominent amongst them, located in the state capital, Enugu.
Also, there is one of the largest grains markets, the Orie Orba Market. This market plays host to a large number of farmers from the North Central States of Kogi, Benue, Nassarawa, and Plateau who dispose of their products in the market to consumers in South-Southern and South-East Nigeria.
Grains and other farm produce are found in this market every four days in large quantities and at a very competitive price.
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Higher Institutions of Learning in Enugu State include:
- University of Nigeria, Nsukka, UNN (Nigeria’s first indigenous university)
- Enugu State University of Science & Technology (ESUT)
- Institute of Management and Technology (IMT)
- Federal Cooperative College, Oji River (FCCO)
- Enugu State College of Education Technical, Enugu
- Caritas University, Amorji-Nike
- Renaissance University, Ugbawka
- Federal School of Dental Technology & Therapy
- Our Saviour Institute of Science and Technology, Enugu
- Federal College of Education, Eha-Amufu, etc.
According to the 2006 census, the state has a total of 3,267,837 population (with an estimate of over 3.8 million in 2012) and ranked 22 of 36 in the country. The State’s density is 460/km2 (1,200/sq mi).
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A large number of the people of Enugu State have Christianity as their religion with small groups practicing African traditional religion known in the state as Omenani or are irreligious or atheist.