Oban Hills of Cross River State

Nigeria is a West African country on the Gulf of Guinea. It has many natural landmarks and wildlife reserves, protected areas such as Cross River National Park and Yankari National Park. Nigeria has waterfalls, dense rain forest, savanna and rare primate habitats. One of the most recognizable sites is Zuma Rock, a 725m-tall monolith outside the capital of Abuja that’s pictured on the national currency.

Nigeria is a country in West Africa which borders Niger in the north, Chad in the northeast, Cameroon in the east, and Benin in the west. Its southern coast is on the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean . Nigeria is a federal republic comprising 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, where the capital Abuja, is located. One of the largest metropolitan areas in the world, Lagos is the largest city in Nigeria and the continent of Africa.

Nigeria is a multinational state inhabited by more than 250 ethnics groups, 500 languages, all identified with variety of cultures. The three largest ethnic groups are the Hausa-Fulani in the north, Yoruba in the west and Igbo in the east. They all together comprise of over 60% of the total population. The official language is English, chosen to facilitate linguistic unity at the national level.

Cross River is a state in South-South Nigeria bordering Cameroon to the east. Its capital is Calabar and its name is derived from the Cross River( Oyono) which passes through the state. English and French are the major foreign languages of the state. Bekwarra, Bette, Ejagham and Efik are major indigenous languages of this state. Ejagham remains the largest ethnic group which stretches from the northern senatorial district to the southern senatorial district.

It is a coastal state located in the Niger Delta region, and occupies 20,156 square kilometres. It shares boundaries with Benue State to the north. Ebonyi and Abia States to the west, to the east by Sud- Quest Province claimed by Ambazonia and Cameroon Republic. The south by Akwa-Ibom and the Atlantic Ocean. The South-South State was created on 27 May 1967 from the former Eastern Region, Nigeria by the General Yakubu Gowon regime. Its name was changed to Cross River State in the 1976 state creation exercise by the then General Murtala Mohammed regime from South Eastern State.

.

The Oban Hills are a range of hills in Cross-River State, Nigeria. They lie within the Oban Hills Division of the Cross River National Park. The hills are rugged. 100 metres (330 ft) in the river valleys to over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) in the mountains. The soils are highly vulnerable to leaching and erosion where stripped of plant cover. The rainy season lasts from March to November, with annual rainfall of over 3,500 mm.

The northern part is drained by the Cross River and its tributaries. The southern parts are drained by the Calabar, Kwa, and Korup rivers. The Oban hills, which take their name from the small town of Oban to the south. It contains the largest area of unexploited lowland rain forest in Nigeria. A 1988 report said that the remaining patches of forest on mountainous slopes were encroached upon for logging and farming. The Oban Hills Forest Reserve was made a part of the Cross River National Park in 1991.

.

So next time you pay a visit to Cross River State, do well to visit the Oban hills.