SOUTH WESTERN HIGHLANDS OF NIGERIA
Physical Setting
The western highlands region covers Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Edo and parts of Kwara and Kogi States. The highlands generally range between 300m and 700m above sea level. There are isolated local peaks, such as, Idanre and Efon-Alaye hills; and other isolated inselbergs in the area. A greater part of the area is gently undulating; and, in several areas, the relief is nearly flat. The highlands are the main water, divide between rivers flowing into the Niger River and rivers flowing into the creeks and lagoons along the Atlantic coast. The region is well drained by short coastal rivers, such as, Rivers Ogun, Osun, Osse, and Owena. Old Basement complex igneous and metamorphic rocks dominate the geology of the area, although it is covered in a number of places by more recent sedimentary rocks.
The southern parts of the region have a sub-equatorial type of climate with a hot and humid rainy season that lasts between 8 to 10 months, and with an average annual temperature of 27°C. Moist tropical forest, is the main natural vegetation but only patches of these remain primarily along river valleys and in nature reserves. The climate in the northern parts is more tropical with marked wet and dry seasons of almost equal length and the vegetation is dry forest which has been degraded into derived savanna woodland over much of the region.
People and Population
The Yoruba are the main ethnic group. Other ethnic groups in the area include the Ebira, Igala and Edo. This is the most urbanized region in the country and the area is densely populated. The major urban centres in the area include Ibadan, Oyo, Ogbomosho, Abeokuta, Otta, Oshogbo, Ile-Ife, Akure, Ondo, and Ado-Ekiti. The settlement pattern in most parts of this region is nucleated, either in large towns or rural farming villages.
Resources and Economic Activities
The tropical rainforest climate, the undulating topography and the well-drained loamy to clay soils found in this region favour tree (cash) crop production. The major tree cash crops grown in the area include cocoa, rubber, oil palm, kola nuts, and oranges. In addition, cotton, tobacco and upland rice are cultivated in the drier northern parts of the region. Other crops grown which are locally important and dominant in certain areas include yam, cassava, plantain and fruits such as, oranges, grapes and mangoes. A greater proportion of the kola nuts produced in the country are grown in this region.
Local cottage industry involving the production of the world famous adire textile materials (weaving and dyeing) is a dominant feature in the economy of Abeokuta and its neighbouring areas. Metal and calabash works are notable economic activities in Oyo town.
The south-western highlands region is at the centre of the southwest industrial zone of Nigeria. This zone has a large concentration of both medium and large-scale industries. These industries comprise wood and wood based factories taking advantage of the abundant timber available in the region; confectioneries, beverages, metal works, plastics, tyre rethreading, cement (e.g. Ewekoro) and breweries (Ilesha, NBL Ibadan) etc. Most of the industries source their raw materials from the region’s hinterland. The major industrial centres in this region are Ibadan, Abeokuta, Ilesha, Oshogbo, lle-Ife, Ewekoro and Sango-Otta. Mining and quarrying are important economic activities at Igbeti (marble), Ilesha (alluvial gold), and several areas in the northern part of Oyo State.
Transport and Trade
This region has a good network of modern roads, which links the major urban centres; and through which imported goods and services are moved from Lagos sea ports to centres in the western hinterland and other parts of the country. The south-western wing of the Nigerian railway line system passes through some towns in this region, among which are Abeokuta, Ibadan, Offa, Oshogbo and Ilorin. The region is also linked by air. There are airports at Benin, Akure, Ibadan and Ilorin.
Trade in local commodities such as yam, cassava and local arts and craft dominates the activity in the numerous daily and weekly markets found throughout the region. Due to the proximity of the Lagos sea ports, a lot of imported goods are also sold in the markets in all parts of the region. Shagamu is an important market centre that specializes in the sale of kola nuts.
Problems of Development
- Soil erosion is a problem of the built environment in towns found in the hilly areas of this region, such as in parts of Akoko, Edo and Ekiti.
- The thick tropical rainforest and the secondary forest regrowths of the area make farming a rigorous activity because it involves clearing big trees and a thick woody undergrowth before preparing the land for tillage.
- The major cash crops grown in the area namely, cocoa and kola nuts are prone to several pests and diseases such as swollen shoot, black pod, capsid and white ants.
- Flooding, due to the high amounts of rainfall recorded in the area, is a devastating environmental feature that occasionally causes a lot of havoc and destruction in some areas. A typical example was the Ogunpa flood disaster of Ibadan in 1984.
