Delta State

Delta is a state in the South-South geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Named after the Niger Delta—a large part of which is in the state—the state was formed from the former Bendel State, on 27 August 1991. It is bordered on the north by Edo State, the east by Anambra and Rivers states, and the south by Bayelsa State while to the west by Ondo State, and the Bight of Benin which covers about 160 kilometres of the state's coastline. The state was initially created with 12 local government areas in 1991, but was later expanded to 19 and now has 25 local government areas. Its capital city is Asaba which is located along the River Niger on the northeastern end of the state, while the state's economic center is the city of Warri on the southwestern coastline.

Of the 36 states, Delta is the 23rd largest in the area and twelfth most populous with an estimated population of over 7.8 million as of 2024. Geographically, the state is divided between the Central African mangroves in the coastal southwest and the Nigerian lowland forests in most of the rest of the state as a small portion of the Niger Delta swamp forests are in the far south. The other important geographical features are the River Niger and its distributary, the Forçados River, which flow along Delta's eastern and southern borders, respectively; while fellow Niger distributary, the Escravos River, runs through Warri and the coastal areas are riddled with dozens of smaller Niger distributaries that make up much of the western Niger Delta. Much of the state's nature contains threatened dwarf crocodile, Grey parrot, African fish eagle, mona monkey, and African manatee populations along with potentially extirpated populations of African leopard and Nigeria-Cameroon chimpanzee. Offshore, the state is also biodiverse as there are populations of Lesser African threadfin, crabs, and blue mussel along with various cetacean species.

What is now Delta State has been inhabited for years by various ethnic groups, including the Isoko and Urhobo the centre of the state; Ukwuani in the east; the Ika, Enuani, and Olukumi in the northeast; the Anioma and the northwest; and the Ijaw, Itsekiri, and also the Urhobo, in the southwest. In the pre-colonial period, the now-Delta State was divided into various monarchial states like the Kingdom of Warri, Aboh and Agbon Kingdom before the area became a part of the British Oil Rivers Protectorate in 1884. In the early 1900s, the British incorporated the protectorate (now renamed the Niger Coast Protectorate) into the Southern Nigeria Protectorate which later amalgamated into British Nigeria. However, colonial forces did not gain permanent control of modern-day Delta State until the 1910s, due to the uprisings of the Ekumeku Movement. Notably, Delta has one of the few parts of Nigeria to have been under French control as the UK leased the enclave of Forcados to France from 1903 to 1930.

After independence in 1960, the area of now-Delta was a part of the post-independence Western Region until 1963 when the region was split and the area became part of the Mid-Western Region. In 1967, the Eastern Region attempted to secede as the state of Biafra and invaded the Mid-Western Region in an attempt to capture Lagos and end the war quickly; Biafran forces were halted and eventually pushed back but briefly declared the captured Mid-Western Region (including now-Delta State) as the Republic of Benin. Similarly, upon the liberation of the Mid-West, Nigerian forces committed the Asaba massacre against ethnic Igbos in Asaba. At the war's end and the reunification of Nigeria, the Mid-Western Region was reformed until 1976 when it was renamed Bendel State. In 1991, Bendel State was split with the north becoming Edo State and the south becoming Delta State.

Economically, Delta State is based around the production of crude oil and natural gas as one of the main oil-producing states in the country. Key minor industries involve agriculture as the state has substantial oil palm, yam, and cassava crops along with fishing and heliciculture. In large part due to its vast oil revenues, Delta has the fourth highest Human Development Index in the country; however, disputes between oil companies and local communities along with years of systemic corruption have led to hostilities that are often tied to the lack of development in host communities.

Delta State covers a landmass of about 18,050 km² (6,970 mi²), of which more than 60% is land. The state lies approximately between 5°00' and 6°45' E and 5°00' and 6°30' N. It is geographically located in Nigeria's Midwest, bounded in the north and west by Edo State for 350 km (218 miles), the east by Anambra, and Rivers States for about 93 km and about 50 km respectively, southeast by Bayelsa State across the Niger River for 17 km and the Forçados River for 198 km, and on the southern extreme is the Bight of Benin which covers about 160 kilometres of the state's coastline. Delta State is generally low-lying without any remarkable hills. The state has a wide coastal belt inter-laced with rivulets and streams, which form part of the Niger Delta.

An important characteristic of the Climate of Delta State is flooding. The ecological attributes of Delta State also include heavy rainfall, which causes the state, like other states in the Niger-Delta Nigeria, to be regarded as lowland rainforest, freshwater swamp and mangrove swamp. Delta State has a mean rainfall of 36.9 mm, as well as an increase in rainfall which in the year 2015 resulted in inundation of farmlands in the state. 2015 was also the year the state had the highest rainfall, amounting to 3183.6 mm. In the year 2007, the state had the lowest rainfall over the 11-year period, amounting to an annual rainfall of 2030.58 mm. While January has the lowest rainfall in the state, in July, rainfall is very high at 423.2 mm.

Delta State was defined out of the former Bendel State on 27 August 1991. The state was actualized following agitations for the realization of a separate distinct state by the peoples of the old Delta Province. There was yet another state request proposed as "Anioma State", comprising the Asaba and Agbor Divisions of the old Midwest region. The then military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, recognized Delta State but chose "Asaba", a prominent town within the Northwestern Lower Niger, as the capital city. The proposed capital was a virgin land in the heart of the two constituent divisions that constitutes the Northwestern Lower Niger. Delta state was once integrated in the Mid Western State from 1963 to 1976, and later Bendel State, from 1976 to 1991. The name "Bendel" (Ben-Del) was coined from the old Benin and Delta Provinces of Western Region-Delta to reflect the integration of Benin and Delta provinces.