Taraba State

Taraba is a state in northeastern Nigeria, carved out of the former Gongola state on August 27, 1991, under the military regime of General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida. Its name comes from the Taraba River, which flows through the southern part of the state, and it is often called "Nature's Gift to the Nation." The capital is Jalingo, and the state is home to roughly 80 different ethnic groups, each with its own language.

The state was formed by merging three former divisions: Wukari, Mambilla, and Muri. It shares borders with Nasarawa, Benue, Plateau, Bauchi, Gombe, and Adamawa states, as well as the Northwest Region of Cameroon. Major rivers include the Benue, Donga, and Taraba, all originating in the Cameroonian mountains and draining northward before joining the Niger River.

Taraba has an average annual temperature of 33°C, with the hottest months being March and April, when highs reach about 40.44°C. It receives roughly 100.64 millimeters of rainfall per year, with heavier rains in August, and average relative humidity is around 54.98%. In April 2023, flooding affected many homes and commercial buildings in the state.

The state is divided into 16 local government areas: Ardo Kola, Bali, Donga, Gashaka, Gassol, Ibi, Jalingo, Karim Lamido, Kurmi, Lau, Sardauna, Takum, Ussa, Wukari, Yorro, and Zing. Its government consists of a democratically elected governor and a House of Assembly. The governor is chosen through a modified two-round system, requiring a plurality of votes and at least 25% of votes in two-thirds of the state's local government areas to win outright; otherwise, a runoff is held.

Healthcare facilities include Courage Hospital, Federal Medical Centre, Gateway Hospital, General Hospital in Bali, Sauki Hospital and Maternity, Totus Hospital and Maternity, Albert Healthcare Company, Federal University Teaching Hospital in Wukari, Taraba Specialist Hospital, Kwararafa Hospital and Maternity, Federal Polytechnic Bali Medical Centre, First Referral Hospital, and Biyama Hospital.

Languages spoken across the state, listed by local government area, include Akum, Bukwen, Esimbi, Fali of Baissa, Jiba, Njerep, Tha, Yandang, Yotti, and Ywom. Major ethnic groups are the Jukun, Jenjo, Fulani, Mumuye, Mambilla, Kuteb, Karimjo Wurkun, Tiv, Yandang, Ndola, Ichen, Tigon, and Jibu. The northern part is mostly Fulani, Mumuye, and Sho; the south is primarily Jukun, Wurkum, Tiv, Chamba, Kuteb, and Ichen; the central region is mainly Fulani, Mambilla, Ndola, Tigon, Jibu, Wurbo, and Daka.

Educational institutions include Federal Polytechnic in Bali, Federal University in Wukari, Kwararafa University in Wukari, Taraba State University, College of Education in Zing, Taraba State College of Health Technology in Takum, and Taraba State Polytechnic in Suntai.

Transportation relies on federal highways like A4 and A8, plus major roads such as Bachumbi Road, Wukari-Ampei Road, and Garin Kunini-Zing Road. Jalingo Airport serves the state. The economy is largely agricultural, with cash crops like coffee, tea, groundnuts, and cotton, as well as maize, rice, sorghum, millet, cassava, and yam. Livestock—cattle, sheep, goats, poultry, rabbits, and pigs—are raised extensively, especially on the Mambilla Plateau and along the Benue and Taraba valleys. In February 2024, the World Bank in Nigeria announced plans to empower 5,200 female livestock farmers in the state. Fishing is a year-round activity along the Benue, Taraba, and Donga rivers. Other occupations include pottery, cloth-weaving, dyeing, mat-making, carving, embroidery, and blacksmithing. Natural resources for industrial and commercial use include barytes, bauxites, graphite, limestone, gypsum, kaoline, feldspar, mica, pyrite, uranium, and gemstones, along with agro-raw materials like maize, millet, and sorghum.