Kebbi | |
|---|---|
 Image showing the yearlyArgungu Fishing Festival held inArgungu | |
 Seal | |
| Nicknames: | |
 Location of Kebbi State in Nigeria | |
| Coordinates:11°30′N4°00′E / 11.500°N 4.000°E /11.500; 4.000 | |
| Country |  Nigeria |
| Date created | 27 August 1991 |
| Capital | Birnin Kebbi |
| Government | |
| • Body | Government of Kebbi State |
| • Governor (List) | Nasir Idris (APC) |
| • Deputy Governor | Abubakar Umar Argungu (APC) |
| • Legislature | Kebbi State House of Assembly |
| • Senators | C:Adamu Aliero (APC) N:Yahaya Abdullahi (APC) S:Garba Musa Maidoki (PDP) |
| • Representatives | List |
| Area | |
• Total | 36,800 km2 (14,200 sq mi) |
| • Rank | 10th of 36 |
| Population (2006 census) | |
• Total | 3,256,541[1] |
• Estimate (2022) | 5,563,900[2] |
| • Rank | 22nd of 36 |
| • Density | 88.5/km2 (229/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Kebbian |
| GDP (PPP) | |
| • Year | 2023 |
| • Total | $16.6 billion[3] |
| • Per capita | $2,900[3] |
| Time zone | UTC+01 (WAT) |
| postal code | 860001 |
| ISO 3166 code | NG-KE |
| HDI (2022) | 0.366[4] low ·37th of 37 |
| Website | kebbistate.gov.ng |
Kebbi StateListenⓘ (Hausa:Jihar Kebbi;Fulfulde: Leydi Kebbi 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤫𞤦𞥆𞤭) is astate innorthwesternNigeria, bordered to the east and north by the states ofSokoto andZamfara, and to the south byNiger State while its western border forms part of the national borders withBenin Republic andNiger. Named for the city ofBirnin Kebbi—the state's capital and largest city—Kebbi State was formed from a part ofSokoto State on 27 August 1991.[5] Of the 36states of Nigeria, Kebbi is thetenth largest in area and17th most populous with an estimated population of about 6 million as of 2023.
Geographically, the state is within thetropicalWest Sudanian savannaecoregion. Important geographic features include theSokoto River which flows through Kebbi into theRiver Niger, which continues south before reachingKainji Lake. Among the state's nature are a number of fish species exhibited during the massiveArgungu Fishing Festival along withhippopotamus,West African manatee, and transientAfrican bush elephant populations.[6]
Ethnically, Kebbi is inhabited by various ethnic groups, with theFulani,Hausa, andZarma peoples living throughout the state while the Achipa (Achipawa),Boko-Bala,Dendi,Dukawa,Kambari,Kamuku,Lela,Puku, andShanga peoples live along the state's diverse western and southern borders. Religiously, the majority of the state's population (~84%) areMuslims while the remaining are followers ofChristianity and traditional religions likeBori.[7]
In the pre-colonial period, the area that is now Kebbi State was mainly controlled by theKebbi Kingdom, aHausa Banza bakwai state, until the early 1800s whenFulani jihadists seized part of the area and attempted to incorporate it into theGwandu Emirate under theSokoto Caliphate. Over the next century, Kebbi rulers fought Sokoto on-and-off until the 1900s and 1910s, when the British seized control of the area as a part of theNorthern Nigeria Protectorate which later merged intoBritish Nigeria before becoming independent asNigeria in 1960.[8] Originally, modern-day Kebbi State was a part of the post-independenceNorthern Region until 1967 when the region was split and the area became part of theNorth-Western State. After the North-Eastern State was split,Sokoto State was formed in 1976 alongside ten other states. Twenty years afterward, a group of LGAs in Sokoto State's west and south was broken off to form the new Kebbi State.
Economically, Kebbi State is largely based around fishing and agriculture, mainly ofsorghum,groundnuts,millet, onions, and rice crops.[9] Other key industries are trading, especially in the city ofBirnin Kebbi, and thelivestock herding ofcamels,cattle,goats, andsheep. Kebbi has thelowestHuman Development Index andsixth lowestGDP in the country.[10]
Kebbi state is traditionally considered bySarki mythology as the homeland of the ƴan uwa bakwai states andHausa kingdoms.
Kebbi resisted theFulani jihad of the early 19th-century, but in the later 19th-century, the area largely converted toIslam through peaceful means.[11]
Zuru emirate is divided into five administrative chiefdoms:Dabai,Danko,Fakai,Sakaba, andWasagu. The third class chief, who is also member of theZuru town in Dabai chiefdom, where the emirate headquarters is located, heads each of the towns.Zuru Emirate is located in the southern part of Kebbi state Nigeria, occupying an area of about 9000sq km. It is bordered byGummi inZamfara state in the North. To the south isNiger state, this borderline extends also arbitrarily on land to the west, to a point where it ends a few kilometers to the west of large tributary of the Dan Zari River, a northwest ward protrusion ofYauri Emirate of Kebbi.[12]
In fact, going by history, Zuru people being multi-ethnic are grouped into categories. The first category is of those that claim long term settlement and the second category is of the much more recent settlers, who in fact regard themselves – and are also regarded by the others as recent immigrants or even as temporary strangers.In the first category are theAchifawa, Kambari, Dukkawa Fakkawa,'Dankawa, Worawa, Katsinawa andLelna (Dakarkari' such as sindawa').[citation needed]
It is characteristic to find that some of them lay claim to have originated from the Hausas. Zuru as was said, is a result of upheaval, resulting from events such as Kanta's breakaway fromSonghai andNupe-Kororofa control. Moreover, theKatsinawa, who in fact see themselves as immigrants from the old state ofKatsina, which had made political in road Zuru region, especially from the 16th century A.D. onward, and had enabled them to settle and to area's indigenous population.[13]
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Kebbi state was created out of the former Sokoto state on 17 August 1991. The state has a total population of 3,137,989 people as projected from the 1991 census, within 21 local government areas.[14]
The state has Sudan andSahel-savannah. The southern part is generally rocky with theNiger River traversing the state from Benin toNgaski LGA. The northern part of the state is sandy with theRima River passing through Argungu to Bagudo LGA, where it empties into the Niger. Agriculture is the main occupation of the people, especially in the rural areas. Crops produced are mainly grains. Animal rearing and fishing are also common.Christianity andIslam are the dominant religions of the people. There are 225 political wards, 3,000 settlements and 1,036 hard to reach settlements in the 21 local government areas in the state.[15]
Like otherNigerian states, Kebbi state is also characterised with the tropical weather conditions of coldness, wetness andharmattan. The annual rainfall of Kebbi state has the average of 787.53 and 112.21mm, since rainfall is a climaticresource in the state, which aidsagricultural production.[16] The rainy season in the state is between mid-May and mid-September, while the dry season constitutes a period of seven months. The temperature of Kebbi state has an annual variation between 650F and 1040F. Thecloud of Kebbi state is clearer around November to March of the succeeding month, while the state is usually cloudy between March and November at 68% annually. There is a relatively highhumidity between seven months, April and November of every year, with November to July being the windiest.[17]
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Kebbi state consists of 21Local Government Areas (LGAs), fouremirate councils (Gwandu,Argungu,Yauri andZuru), and 35 districts. The LGAs are as follows:[18]
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Kebbi state is mainly populated by Hausa and Fulani people. with some members ofZarma,Lelna (Dakarkari),Bussawa (generally speakers ofBusa),Dukawa,Kambari,Gungawa andKamuku ethnic communities.[19]
Most people who live in Kebbi areMuslims.[20]
TheHausa language is dominant throughout the State. Below is a list of some languages of Kebbi state listed by LGA:[21]
| LGA | Languages |
|---|---|
| Argungu | Dendi;Zarma |
| Bagudo | Bisã;Boko; Dendi;Kyenga |
| Birnin Kebbi | Zarma |
| Bunza | Zarma |
| Donko-Wasagu | C'Lela |
| Dukku | us-Saare |
| Jega | Gibanawa |
| Ngaski | Cishingini;Lopa;Tsikimba;Tsishingini;Tsucuba;Tsuvadi |
| Sakaba | Cicipu; C'Lela;Damakawa;ut-Ma'in |
| Shanga | Shanga |
| Wasagu-Danko | us-Saare;Gwamhi-Wuri |
| Yauri | Reshe; us-Saare |
| Zuru | C'Lela; ut-Ma'in |
Other languages spoken in Kebbi state includeFulfulde,Ut-Hun, andSorko.[21]
Like the majority of Nigerian states, Kebbi state is governed by a governor and a State House of Assembly, under the current administration ofNasir Idris.[22]
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Kebbi state is one of the major producers ofrice in Nigeria. The current participation of more than 70,000 farmers in the Anchor Borrowers Rice and wheat farming, is heading towards making Kebbi state a new destination and hub for agro-based commodities of the country.[23]
To reiterate his commitment to ensure that Kebbi state is not only dependent on federal government allocation, the active governor of the state,Abubakar Atiku Bagudu paid a visit toBenin Republic last year and while on the trip, signed a number of bilateral trade protocols with the government and business community ofBenin Republic with a view to fostering trade, industrial andtourism relationships with the country.[citation needed]
Abubakar Atiku Bagudu is also the Chairman, National Task Force on Rice and Wheat Production in Nigeria.[24]
The tertiary institutions of learning in Kebbi state, both federal government owned, state owned and private institutions are listed this:
A1 north from Niger State at Makirin via Yelwa, Koko,Sokoto State for 19 km from Tungan Ilo via Kuchi inKebbe LGA to Maishaika, Jega, Sokoto State again for nine km from Illela via Tambawel in Kebbe LGA to Ungan-Bawa, and northeast to Sokoto State at Barkeji.
Southwest fromBunza at Kamba to RN8.
Kebbi state has manynatural resources which boost the economy of the state and enhances the availability of raw materials for industrial purposes, these include:[30]
Kebbi state is badly affected by theNigerian bandit conflict. Banditry attacks in the state include the2021 Kebbi massacre on 3 June 2021, theKebbi kidnapping on 24 June 2021, theDankade massacre on 14-15 January 2022 and the2022 Kebbi massacres on 8 March of the same year.[32]
On 17 November 2025, unidentified gunmen killed the vice principal of asecondary school and kidnapped 25 female students in Maga town.[33][34]
{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|title= (help){{cite web}}:Missing or empty|title= (help)State capital:Birnin Kebbi | ||
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