Port Harcourt is the capital of
Rivers StateRivers State is one of the 36 states of Nigeria. Its capital is Port Harcourt. It is bounded on the South by the Atlantic Ocean, to the North by Imo, Abia and Anambra States, to the East by Akwa Ibom State and to the West by Bayelsa and Delta states...
,
NigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. It lies along the
Bonny RiverBonny River is a river in Rivers State, Nigeria. Water taxis which move along the river provide the connection between Bonny Island and Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State, which lies alongside the river.-External links:*...
and is located in the
Niger DeltaThe Niger Delta, the delta of the Niger River in Nigeria, is a densely populated region sometimes called the Oil Rivers because it was once a major producer of palm oil...
. According to the 2006 Nigerian census Port Harcourt has a population of 1,382,592. The Mayor of Port Harcourt City is Chimbiko Iche Akarolo. From
Iguocha Port Harcourt was renamed by
Frederick LugardFrederick John Dealtry Lugard, 1st Baron Lugard GCMG, CB, DSO, PC , known as Sir Frederick Lugard between 1901 and 1928, was a British soldier, mercenary, explorer of Africa and colonial administrator, who was Governor of Hong Kong and Governor-General of Nigeria .-Early life and education:Lugard...
after Lewis Vernon Harcourt in 1913 who was the Secretary of State for the Colonies.
The area that became Port Harcourt in 1913 was originally the farmlands of the Diobu village group of the Ikwerre, a subgroup of the
Igbo peopleIgbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
. The
colonial administration of NigeriaColonial Nigeria ran from 1800 till October 1, 1960 when it gained independence. Up until the amalgamation of 1914, the country's constituting parts existed as separate British protectorates.-Abolition of the Slave Trade:...
created the port to export coal from the collieries of
EnuguEnugu is the capital of Enugu State in Nigeria. It is located in the southeastern area of Nigeria and is largely populated by members of the Igbo ethnic group. The city has a population of 722,664 according to the 2006 Nigerian census. The name Enugu is derived from the two Igbo words Enu Ugwu...
located 151 miles (243 km) north of Port Harcourt, which it was linked to by a railway called the Eastern Line, also built by the British.
Port Harcourt was a site for
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
military operations against
German KamerunGerman Cameroon was a West African colony of the German Empire from 1884 to 1916 in the region of today's Republic of Cameroon.-History:-1800s:...
; it was once part of the
Republic of BiafraBiafra, officially the Republic of Biafra, was a secessionist state in south-eastern Nigeria that existed from 30 May 1967 to 15 January 1970, taking its name from the Bight of Biafra . The inhabitants were mostly the Igbo people who led the secession due to economic, ethnic, cultural and religious...
which seceded from Nigeria and was dissolved in 1970. Commercial quantities of crude oil was discovered in
OloibiriOloibiri is a small community in Ogbia LGA located in Bayelsa State, in the eastern Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Oloibiri is a historic town to the oil and gas industry in Nigeria...
in 1956 and Port Harcourt's economy turned to petroleum when the first shipment of Nigerian crude oil was exported through the city in 1958. Through the benefits of the Nigerian petroleum industry Port Harcourt was further developed with aspects of modernisation such as overpasses and
city blocksUrbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
. Oil firms that currently have offices in the city include
Royal Dutch ShellRoyal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
and
ChevronChevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...
.
Port Harcourt's primary airport is the
Port Harcourt International AirportPort Harcourt International Airport is an international airport located in Omagwa, a suburb of Port Harcourt city in Rivers State, Nigeria. The airport consists of a single terminal with separate facilities for international and domestic flights...
located in the periphery of the city; Nigerian Air Force (NAF) base is the location of the only other airport in the city; used by commercial airlines
Aero ContractorsAero Contractors Company of Nigeria Ltd, knwon as Aero Contractors or simply "Aero", is a Nigerian airline based at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Ikeja, Lagos State, Nigeria...
and Virgin Nigeria (now Air Nigeria) for domestic flights. The main educational establishment in the city is the
University of Port HarcourtThe University of Port Harcourt is a university in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt. It was established in 1975 as University College, Port Harcourt, and was given university status in 1977.-Faculties:...
.
History
Port Harcourt was founded in 1913 by the
British colonial administration of NigeriaThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
The purpose of Port Harcourt was to export the coal which geologist
Albert Ernest KitsonSir Albert Ernest Kitson KBE, CMG was a British/Australian geologist and naturalist, winner of the Lyell Medal in 1927.-Early life:...
had discovered in
EnuguEnugu is the capital of Enugu State in Nigeria. It is located in the southeastern area of Nigeria and is largely populated by members of the Igbo ethnic group. The city has a population of 722,664 according to the 2006 Nigerian census. The name Enugu is derived from the two Igbo words Enu Ugwu...
in 1909. The colonial government caused the people of Diobu to cede their land and by 1913 the building of a port-town was started. Other villages that were later absorbed into the city included Oroworukwo, Mkpogua and Rumuomasi; In the creeks to the south of the original port were the fishing camps and grounds of the
OkrikaOkrika is a port town in Rivers State, Nigeria, capital of the Local Government Area of the same name. The town is situated on a small island just south of Port Harcourt, making it a suburb of the much larger city....
-Ijaw group.
During
World War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Port Harcourt was used as a point for military operations against
Axis forcesThe Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
in
German KamerunGerman Cameroon was a West African colony of the German Empire from 1884 to 1916 in the region of today's Republic of Cameroon.-History:-1800s:...
. After the discovery of crude oil in
OloibiriOloibiri is a small community in Ogbia LGA located in Bayelsa State, in the eastern Niger Delta region of Nigeria. Oloibiri is a historic town to the oil and gas industry in Nigeria...
in 1956 Port Harcourt exported the first shipload from Nigeria in 1958. Port Harcourt became the centre of the Nigerian oil economy and it subsequently reaped benefits of its associations with the petroleum industry by undergoing
modernisationIn the social sciences, modernization or modernisation refers to a model of an evolutionary transition from a 'pre-modern' or 'traditional' to a 'modern' society. The teleology of modernization is described in social evolutionism theories, existing as a template that has been generally followed by...
and
urbanisationUrbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....
. Port Harcourt's growth is further due to its position as the commercial centre and foremost industrial city of the former
Eastern RegionThe Eastern Region was one of Nigeria's federal divisions, dating back originally from the division of the colony Southern Nigeria in 1954. Its capital was Enugu. The region was official divided in 1967 into three new states, East-Central State, Rivers State and South-Eastern State...
; its position in the Niger Delta; and its importance as the centre of social and economic life in Rivers State. A 1973 social survey found that migrants made up 72 percent of Port Harcourt's population. From an area of 15.54 km
2 in 1914, Port Harcourt grew uncontrolled to an area of 360 km
2 in the 1980s.
Geography and climate
The main city of Port Harcourt is the Port Harcourt city in the Port Harcourt Local Government Area, consisting of the former European quarters now called old Government reservation area (GRA) and New layout areas. The Port Harcourt Urban Area (Port Harcourt metropolis) is made up of the city itself and parts of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area. Port Harcourt City, which the capital of Rivers State, is highly congested as it is the only major city of the state. A law has recently passed by the state house and governor Amaechi's administration to spread development to the surrounding communities as part of the effort to decongest the Port Harcourt metropolis. The Greater Port Harcourt urban area, spans eight local government areas that include Port-Harcourt local government,
OkrikaOkrika is a port town in Rivers State, Nigeria, capital of the Local Government Area of the same name. The town is situated on a small island just south of Port Harcourt, making it a suburb of the much larger city....
, Obio/Akpor, Ikwerre,
OyigboOyigbo is a town and Local Government Area of Rivers State, Nigeria. It is a satellite of Port Harcourt, lying a few kilometers to the northeast of the city.Sir Precious Oforji was elected Chairman of the Oyigbo LGA in 2008....
,
Ogu/BoloOgu/Bolo is a Local Government Area in Rivers State, Nigeria. Its headquarters are in the town of Ogu.It has an area of 89 km² and a population of 74,683 at the 2006 census. This is an area belonging to the Ogu/Bolo people....
,
TaiTai is a Local Government Area of Rivers State in Nigeria. It covers an area of 159 sq.km and at the 2006 Census it had a population of 117,797...
and Eleme local governments respectively.
Port Harcourt features a
tropical monsoon climateTropical monsoon climate, occasionally also known as a tropical wet climate or tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate in climate classification, is a relatively rare type of climate that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category "Am."Tropical monsoon climates have monthly...
with lengthy and heavy
rainy seasonsThe the wet season, or rainy season, is the time of year, covering one or more months, when most of the average annual rainfall in a region occurs. The term green season is also sometimes used as a euphemism by tourist authorities. Areas with wet seasons are dispersed across portions of the...
and very short
dry seasonThe dry season is a term commonly used when describing the weather in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which oscillates from the northern to the southern tropics over the course of the year...
s. Only the months of December and January truly qualifies as dry season months in the city. The
harmattanThe Harmattan is a dry and dusty West African trade wind. It blows south from the Sahara into the Gulf of Guinea between the end of November and the middle of March...
, which climatically influences many cities in
West AfricaWest Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
, is less pronounced in Port Harcourt. Port Harcourt's heaviest precipitation occurs during September with an average of 370 mm of rain. December on average is the driest month of the year, with an average rainfall of 20 mm. Temperatures throughout the year in the city are relatively constant, showing little variation throughout the course of the year. Average temperatures are typically between 25°C-28°C in the city.
Economy and infrastructure
The city is a major industrial centre as it has a large number of
multinationalA multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
firms as well as other industrial concerns, particularly business related to the
petroleumPetroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
industry. It is the chief oil-refining city in Nigeria. Rivers State is one of the wealthiest
states in NigeriaNigeria is currently divided into 36 states and Abuja, the federal capital territory. The states are further divided into 774 Local Government Areas....
in terms of gross domestic product and foreign exchange revenue from the oil industry, crude oil being its main export earner.
Some of Port Harcourt's more popular and well-known residential areas are Port Harcourt Township (or just 'Town'), GRA (Government Reserved Area) phases 1—5, Rumuomasi, Ogbunabali, Rumuola, Diobu, Amadi Flats, and Borokiri. The main industrial area is located in Trans Amadi.
Face-me-I-face-youFace-me-I-face-you is a form of Nigerian architecture where a group of one bedroom flats have their entrances facing each other to form a compound with a main entrance leading into a square in the middle...
architecture is quite common to Port Harcourt. The Podium Block of Rivers State Secretariat is an icon of the city. An eighteen storey building, it has the tallest building in the South/South and South/East Geopolitical zones combined. The city has an international airport,
Port Harcourt International AirportPort Harcourt International Airport is an international airport located in Omagwa, a suburb of Port Harcourt city in Rivers State, Nigeria. The airport consists of a single terminal with separate facilities for international and domestic flights...
, two seaports (FOT Onne, Port Harcourt Wharf), two stadiums (
Sharks StadiumSharks Stadium is a multi-use stadium in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Part of the Alfred Diete-Spiff Rivers State sports complex, it is used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Sharks F.C.. The stadium has a capacity of 10,000 people....
which is the civic center) and
Liberation StadiumLiberation Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Elekahia area of Port Harcourt, Nigeria. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of Dolphins F.C.. The stadium has a capacity of 25,000 people....
located in Elekahia and two refineries. The city plays host to the
Rivers State University of Science and TechnologyRivers State University of Science and Technology is a University in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. The University has staff strength of 3,000 and a student population of 17,000.-History:...
; there is also a
University of Port HarcourtThe University of Port Harcourt is a university in the Nigerian city of Port Harcourt. It was established in 1975 as University College, Port Harcourt, and was given university status in 1977.-Faculties:...
, which is Located in Obio/Akpor which was carved out of Port Harcourt Local Government Area for ease of administration. The city is sprawling in nature as building codes and zoning regulations are poorly enforced. Land is cleared and 'lean to' buildings constructed sometimes overnight. This adds to flooding and sanitation problems since with no proper drainage or sewer system, parts of the city flood during the very heavy monsoon-type rains that fall for half the year.
Greater Port-Harcourt City development (GPHCDA)
In early 2009 the State Government under the leadership of Governor Chibuike Amaechi announced plans for the creation of a new city to be called the Greater Port-Harcourt City.
http://www.gphcity.com The new city is to be located close to the Port-Harcourt International Airport. The total coverage area for the Greater Port Harcourt city Development is 1900 sq kms spanning 8 local governments in Rivers State including all of PH Local Govt, Ogu Bolo, Eleme, Ikwere, Etche, Obio Akpor,Okrika, Eleme local government areas.
The Authority (GPHCDA) was established by law in April 2009 with a mandate to facilitate the implementation of the Greater Port Harcourt master plan and build the new city.
The Authority is led by an administrator, Dame Aleruchi Cookey Gam, supported by a management team comprising the Secretary to the authority and Board, Dr Silva Opusunju, Director Finance Aaron Obelly, Director Administration (Permanent Secretary) MI Tella, Director Public Affairs Kenneth Anga, Director Legal Dr. Justice Nwobike, Director Projects Edmund Altraide, Director Development Control Sir Ngozi Worgu.
The Greater Port Harcourt city hosted several of the events at the 17th national sports festival tagged 'Garden City games'. The games in 2011 have been confirmed to be the best festival so far hosted by any city.
The Greater Port Harcourt City has several features and advantages making it attractive to investors seeking investment opportunities in Nigeria. For more information interested parties may contact the GPHCDA Public Affairs department at 38 Ordinance Road Trans Amadi, Port Harcourt www.gphcity.com. Attention of the Director.
Militancy
In recent times, the activities of several armed militant gangs has cast a huge shadow on life and commerce in Port Harcourt. These gangs that for the most part claim to fight for the interest of the indigenous people of Rivers State and the Niger Delta region of Nigeria by asking for a share Nigeria's oil wealth, are however better noted and feared for violent conduct that include random and targeted killings, arson, kidnappings of both foreign workers and indigenous people and bombings. After a spate of violence in 2007, a curfew was imposed on the town, this was however lifted by the Governor of Rivers State in the last days of 2007. On New Year's Eve 2007, Port Harcourt was once again rocked by violence which left at least sixteen people dead.
Ateke TomAteke Tom is the leader of the Niger Delta Vigilante, an ethnic Ijaw militia in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. In August 2007 following days of gun fights between various militia groups and security forces in Port Harcourt, Ateke Tom wrote to the Governor, Celestine Omehia, requesting for...
, the leader of one of the more prominent militias claimed responsibility for most of the fatalities. But now, Port Harcourt has seemingly had some reduction in militancy due to the introduction of the amnesty by the federal Government for the militants.
External links