Ekiti State


Ekiti is a state in southwestern Nigeria, bordered to the North by Kwara State for 61 km, to the Northeast by Kogi State for 92 km, to the South and Southeast by Ondo State, and to the West by Osun State for 84 km. Named for the Ekiti people—the Yoruba subgroup that makes up the majority of the state's population—Ekiti State was carved out from a part of Ondo State in 1996 and has its capital as the city of Ado-Ekiti.
One of the smallest and most educated states with the highest number of professors in Nigeria, Ekiti is the 31st largest in the area and 30th most populous with an estimated population of nearly 3.5 million as of 2022. Geographically, the state is divided between the Nigerian lowland forests in most of the state and the drier Guinean forest–savanna mosaic in the north. Among the state's nature are false acraeas, mona monkey, forest buffalo, and grey parrot populations along with one of the last remaining Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee populations with a troop of about 20 chimpanzees in the heavily threatened Ise Forest Reserve. In March 2022, Ekiti State became the first state in Nigeria to adopt a state tree as one of its official symbols. On World Forest Day 2022, Governor Kayode Fayemi announced that Obeche had been chosen as State Tree owing to its local prominence and environmental, economic and cultural significance.
Modern-day Ekiti State has been primarily inhabited for centuries by the Ekiti people, a Yoruba subgroup, with minorities of the Akoko Yoruba subgroup,and Yagba Yoruba subgroup. Religiously, the majority of the state's population are Christian with smaller Muslim and traditionalist minorities at about 5% and 5%, respectively.
In the pre-colonial period, the area that is now Ekiti State was at a time subjugated, like other ethnic groups in the present-day Yorubaland, by the Ibadan impirialist movement which culminated in the collapse of its hegemony in 1890s, and finally, the Ekitiland which formed the Ekiti Confederacy in the latter half of the 1800s. From 1877 to 1893, the Ekiti Confederacy fought the Oyo-Ibadan during EkitiParapo War led by Fabunmi Okemesi-Ekiti alongside other Eastern Yoruba groups and other Western Yoruba groups; the war ended in a British-brokered stalemate before the area was colonized and incorporated into the British Southern Nigeria Protectorate which later merged into British Nigeria in 1914. After independence in 1960, the area of now-Ekiti was a part of the post-independence Western Region until 1967 when the region was split and the area became part of the Western State. In 1976, the Western State was split and the state's east became Ondo State. Twenty years later, Ondo State's northwest was broken off to form Ekiti State.
Economically, Ekiti State is partially based on agriculture, mainly of yams, rice, cocoa, and cassava crops. Key minor industries are logging and tourism. Ekiti has the joint-thirteenth highest Human Development Index in the country and is considered the heart of the homeland of the Ekiti people.
Educationally, Ekiti State has the highest number of professors in Nigeria.

History

Ekiti was an independent state prior to the British conquest. It was one of the many Yoruba states in what is today Nigeria. The Ekiti people as a nation and districts of the Yoruba race trace some of her progeny to Oduduwa, the father and progenitor of the Yoruba race even though good reason appears to establish the existence of aboriginal people in Ekiti region prior to the influx of royalty from present-day Ile Ife as that kingdom grew and abound.
There are two major schools of thought regarding Ekiti's history. First was the story that tied the origin of Ekiti to Ife. The story goes that the Olofin, one of the sons of Oduduwa had 16 children and in the means of searching for the new land to develop, they all journeyed out of Ile-Ife as they walked through the Iwo-Eleru at Ijare and had stopped over at a place called Igbo-Aka closer to Ile-Oluji.
The Olofin, the 16 children and some other beloved people continued with their journey, but when they got to a particular lovely and flat land, the Owa-Obokun and Orangun of Ila decided to stay in the present Ijesha and Igbomina land in Osun state. While the remaining 14 children journeyed onwards and later settled in the present-day Ekiti land. They discovered that there were many hills in the place and they said in their mother's language that this is "Ile olokiti" the land of hills. Therefore, the Okiti was later blended to Ekiti. So Ekiti derived her name through hills.
This history may describe the history of certain royalty in present-day Ekiti, but not all of Ekiti which is made up of 131 Principal towns, with their own royalty and many land-owning communities with no royalty at all. In fact, the invading royalties from the East went on to colonize and transform the aboriginals, distinguishing the Ekiti dialect upon mix-up with the Ife/Oyo tongue of the Yorubas according to Samuel Johnson, the renowned historian of the early Yoruba States and Affairs.
The second school of thought on Ekiti's origin is more likely and grounded in actual history. It was said that Oduduwa, the ancestor of the Yoruba traveled to Ife where he met people who were already settled there. Among the elders he met in the town were Agbonniregun , Obatala, Orelure, Obameri, Elesije, Obamirin, Obalejugbe just to mention a few. It is known that descendants of Agbonniregun settled in Ekiti, examples being the Alara and Ajero who are sons of Ifa. Orunmila himself spent a greater part of his life at Ado. Because of this, we have the saying ‘Ado ni ile Ifa’ . The Ekiti have ever since settled in their present location.
Nobody can give accurate dates to these events due to the lack of written sources, but people have lived in Ekiti for centuries. It is on record that Ekiti Obas had a prosperous reign in the 13th century. An example was the reign of Ewi Ata of Ado-Ekiti in the 1400s.
About the Ekitis, Samuel Johnson had this to say:
"Historically, the Ekitis are among the aboriginal elements of Nigeria absorbed by the invaders from the East. "The term Ekiti denotes a "Mound", and is derived from the rugged mountainous feature of that part of the country. It is an extensive province and well-watered, including several tribes and families right onto the border of the Niger, eastward. They hold themselves quite distinct from the Ijesas, especially in political affairs.". It is believed that the ancestors of the Ekiti people who came to combine with the aboriginal people on the land migrated from Ile Ife, the spiritual home of the Yoruba people. According to oral and contemporary written sources of Yoruba history, Oduduwa, the ancestor of the Yoruba traveled to Ife where he met people who were already settled there. Among the elders he met in the town were Agbonniregun , Obatala, Orelure, Obameri, Elesije, Obamirin, Obalejugbe just to mention a few. It is known that descendants of Agbonniregun settled in Ekiti, examples being the Alara and Ajero who are sons of Ifa, Orunmila himself spent a greater part of his life at Ado. Due to this, we have the saying ‘Ado ni ile Ifa’ . The Ekiti have ever since settled in their present location.
The early Ekiti country is divided into 16 districts, each with its own Owa or King of which four are supreme, viz. : —
The Owore of Otun, The Ajero of Ijero, The Ewi of Ado and The Elekole of Ikole.
The following are the minor Ekiti kings: —
Alara of Aramoko, Alaye of Efon Alaye, Ajanpanda of Akure, Ologotun of Ogotun, Olojudo of Ido, Attah of Aiyede, Oloja Oke of Igbo Odo, Oloye of Oye, Olomuwo of Omuwo, Onire of Ire, Arinjale of Ise and Onitaji of Itaji.
The Orangun of Ila is sometimes classed among them, but he is only Ekiti in sympathy, being of a different family."
The modern Ekiti state was formed from part of Ondo in 1996. Prior to this, it was part of the Ondo Province in the Western Region of Nigeria. While the non-Ekiti part of the region largely dominated geographically, Akure which was then regarded as an Ekiti town was the headquarters of Ondo province.

Geography

The State is mainly an upland zone, rising over 250 meters above sea level. It lies on an area underlain by metamorphic rock. It is generally an undulating part of the country with a characteristic landscape that consists of old plains broken by step-sided out-crops that may occur singularly or in groups or ridges.
Such rocks out-crops exist mainly at Aramoko, Efon-Alaiye, Ikere-Ekiti, Igbara-odo- ekiti and Okemesi-Ekiti. The State is dotted with rugged hills, notable ones being Ikere-Ekiti Hills in the south, Efon-Alaiye Hills on the western boundary and Ado-Ekiti Hills in the centre.

Climate and vegetation

The State enjoys a tropical climate with two distinct seasons. These are the rainy season and the dry season. Temperature ranges between 21° and 28 °C with high humidity. The southwesterly wind and the northeast trade winds blow in the rainy and dry seasons respectively. Tropical forest exists in the south, while savannah occupies the northern peripheries.

Towns and administrative divisions

Local Government Areas

Ekiti State consists of sixteen Local Government Areas. They are:
  • Ado-Ekiti
  • Ikere
  • Oye
  • Aiyekire
  • Efon
  • Ekiti East
  • Ekiti South-West
  • Ekiti West
  • Emure
  • Ido-Osi
  • Ijero
  • Ikole
  • Ilejemeje
  • Irepodun/Ifelodun
  • Ise/Orun
  • Moba

    Current list of Local Government Area Chairmen.

1 Ise/Orun: Hon. Olumide Falade
2 Gbonyin: Hon. Sade Akinrinmola
3 Emure: Hon. Oludare Paul Awopetu
4 Ido-Osi: Hon. Chief Ayodeji Arogbodo
5 Oye: Hon. Tayo Ogundare
6 Irepodun/Ifelodun: Hon. Dapo Olagunju
7 Ado-Ekiti: Hon. Deji Ogunsakin
8 Ikere: Hon. Bola Alonge
9 Ekiti South West: Hon. Lanrewaju Omolase
10 Efon: Hon. Bolaji Jeje
11 Ilejemeje: Hon. Ganiyu Bakare
12 Ijero: Hon. Abiodun Dada
13 Ekiti East: Hon. Samuel Adeniyi
14 Ekiti West: Hon. Kolawole Omotunde
15 Moba: Hon. Adeniyi Adebayo
16 Ikole: Hon. Adesola Adeyanju