Kano State

Kano State
Jihar Kano جِهَرْ كَنُوْ (Hausa)
State
See caption
Aerial view of Kano, the capital city
A stone wall of varying height
Kano city walls
Entrance of a palace
Gidan Rumfa
A steep, reddish hill
Dalla Hill
A large group of colourfully-dressed people
Durbar festival in Kano
A green-and-white flag
Flag
Two camels surrounding an emblem with a bird on top
Seal
Nicknames: 
Centre of Commerce, Tumbin Giwa
Location in north-central Nigeria
Location of Kano State in Nigeria
Coordinates: 11°30′N 8°30′E / 11.500°N 8.500°E / 11.500; 8.500
Country Nigeria
LGAs44
Date created27 May 1967
CapitalKano
Government
 • BodyGovernment of Kano State
 • GovernorAbba Kabir Yusuf (APC)
 • Deputy GovernorMurtala Sule Garo (APC)
 • LegislatureKano State House of Assembly
 • SenatorsC: Rufai Hanga (NDC)
N: Barau Jibrin (APC)
S: Kawu Sumaila (APC)
 • RepresentativesList
Area
 • Total
20,131 km2 (7,773 sq mi)
 • Rank20th of 36
Population
 (2006 census)
 • Total
9,401,288
 • Estimate 
(2026)
17,280,113
 • Rank1st/2nd of 36
 • Density467.01/km2 (1,209.5/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)
 • Year2021
 • Total$27.17 billion
13th of 36
 • Per capita$1,761
36th of 36
Time zoneUTC+01 (WAT)
postal code
700001
ISO 3166 codeNG-KN
HDI (2022)0.482
low · 28th of 37
Websitewww.kanostate.gov.ng
^1 Preliminary results
Black-and-white aerial photo
Kano city in December 1930

Kano State ⓘ (Hausa: Jihar Kano جِهَرْ كَنُوَ), one of the 36 states of Nigeria, is in the north of the country. In the 2006 national census, Kano State was the most populous state in Nigeria. Created in 1967 from the former Northern Region, Kano State shares borders with Katsina State on the northwest, Jigawa State on the northeast, Bauchi State on the southeast, and Kaduna State on the southwest. The state capital is Kano, Nigeria's largest city after Lagos. Its governor is Abba Kabir Yusuf, who was sworn in on 29 May 2023.

Two major ethnic groups, the Hausa and Fulani, make up most of Kano State's population. Like most parts of northern Nigeria, Hausa is the state's dominant language. Kano State has faced attacks by the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram, inter-religious violence, and extreme poverty. The state observes Sharia law within the legal framework of the Nigerian constitution.

History

Kano State was the site of a number of kingdoms and empires which included the Kingdom of Kano, centred on Dalla Hill (Hausa: Dutsen Dala) from to 1000 to 1349 CE. In 1349, the Sultanate of Kano was established when Yaji I converted to Islam and became its first sultan. Kurmi Market, which opened in 1463, helped the city of Kano become a centre of commercial activity in Hausaland. The market remains open, and its historic importance is reflected in the state's nickname: Centre of Commerce.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Sultanate of Kano became one of the most powerful Hausa Kingdoms. After the 1804–1808 Fulani jihad, the Kano Emirate replaced the former sultanate. Emir Ibrahim Dabo made a number of administrative reforms to increase commerce in the region. Leaders encouraged traders to move from Katsina, capitalising on raids from the Hausa Sultanate of Maradi.

The British Empire conquered the Kano Emirate in 1903, incorporating it into the Northern Nigeria Protectorate. The major ethnic groups in pre-colonial Kano were the Hausa, Fulani, Barebari (Kanuri), Tuareg, Arabs, and Nupe. Most people in Kano speak Hausa as a first language, and some identify as ethnically Hausa.

Kano State has a diverse economy, establishing itself as a centre of industry, agriculture, and Islamic banking. The state was created on 27 May 1967, and part of it became Jigawa State in 1991.

Geography

Climate

The rainfall in Kano State varies, with drought and near-drought conditions during the 1970s and 1980s. Moisture conditions improved from the 1990s to 2015, but rainfall still fluctuated. Since 2015, there has been an increase in rainfall. According to a Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) report, rainfall averages 897.7 mm (35.34 in).

NIMET issued a flood warning for some states, including Kano, during the first quarter of 2022. Their warning was based on the amount and distribution of nationwide rainfall during the rainy season. According to the Kano State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), 25 local government districts experienced flooding.

Temperature

Kano's temperature has risen significantly since the 1960s. The state's annual diurnal temperature is between 26 and 30 °C (79 and 86 °F), and humidity ranges from 17 to 90 percent.

Economy

Kano has a number of large markets, including Kurmi Market, Kantin Kwari Market, Sabon Gari Market, Dawanau Market, Kofar Wanbai Market, Galadima Market, Yankura Market and Bata Market. Many markets specialise in certain products such as textiles or grain. Since the 19th century, the dye industry has contributed to Kano's economy.

Agriculture

Subsistence and commercial agriculture are primarily practised in the state's outlying districts. Food crops include millet, cowpeas, sorghum, maize and rice for local consumption, and groundnuts and cotton are produced for export and industry. During the colonial period and several years after the country's independence, the groundnuts produced in the state constituted one of the major sources of revenue of the country. Kano State is a major producer of hides and skins, sesame, soybeans, cotton, garlic, gum arabic and chili peppers. A 2018 study of Tudun Wada found that temperature and rainfall were likely to increase with climate change (placing increased stress on crops), and would require adaptation of agricultural practices.

Industry

Kano State is Nigeria's second-largest industrial centre, after Lagos State, and the largest in northern Nigeria. Industries include textiles, tanning, footwear, cosmetics, plastics, enamelware, pharmaceuticals, ceramics, furniture, agricultural implements, soft drinks, food and beverages, dairy products, vegetable oil, and animal feed. Kano is the centre of a growing Islamic banking industry in Nigeria.

Tourism

Tourist attractions in the state include:

Natural resources

Kano State has a variety of natural resources, including the minerals cassiterite, copper, gemstones, glass sand, lead, zinc and tantalite.

Transport

Roads

Federal highways

Other major roads

  • The Kunya-Mutum road northeast from the A2 to Jigawa State at Duma
  • The Kano-Gumel road northeast via Dosai, Gezawa, Kirazare and Dadin Diniya to Jigawa State, near Magama
  • The Kano-Ringim road east from Dosai via Gwandu, Wangara, Zugachi and Zakirai to Jigawa State at Gorshinsi
  • South from Gwandu via Gogel to the A237 at Zogarava
  • The Gaya-Wudil Road east from the A237 to Jigawa at Dundubis as the Gaya-Azare Road
  • South from the A2 at Karfi Ruga as the Kano-Kumbotso-Rano (or Rano-Karfin Ruga) Road via Bunkure, Rano, Kibiya, Tarai, Burunburum, Sitti and Masu to Bauchi State at Gwanda as the Sabon Gari-Gwanda-Kafin-Birgi Road
  • The Kafin Maiyaki-Sabin Bimi Road south from the A2 via Arna, Tudun Wada, Falgore Game Reserve, Tagwaye and Dadin Kowa to Kaduna State at Murai
  • The Kiru-Rurum Road north from the A2 at Kafin Maiyaki via Yako and Karaye to Gwarzo as the Kafi-Jamaa Kosa Road
  • Murtala Mohammed Road west from Kano city to Katsina State at Gangara
  • The Gwarzo-Shanono Road north via Bagawi to the A9 at Bichi

Railways

Kano is on the 1067 mm Cape-gauge Western Railway line from Lagos via Kaduna to Jigawa State (rehabilitated in 2013), with a double-track standard-gauge line proposed in 2025.

Airport

Terminal exterior
Malam Aminu Kano International Airport

Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, built in 1936, is the headquarters of Kabo Air, Azman Airlines and Max Air.

Education

Secondary schools

Universities

Kano State has five universities: one federal university, one regimented federal university, two state universities, and one private university.

Polytechnics and colleges

Local government areas

Kano State has 44 local government areas (LGAs).

Name Area (km2) Population (2006) Administrative capital Postal code
Fagge 21 200,095 Waje 700
Dala 19 418,759 Gwanmaja 700
Gwale 18 357,827 Gwale 700
Kano Municipal 17 371,243 Kofar Kudu 700
Tarauni 28 221,844 Unguwa Uku 700
Nassarawa 34 596,411 Bompai 700
Kumbotso 158 294,391 Kumbotso 700
Ungogo 204 365,737 Ungogo 700
Kano (metropolitan area) 499 2,828,861 700
Dawakin Tofa 479 246,197 Dawakin Tofa 701
Tofa 202 98,603 Tofa 701
Rimin Gado 225 103,371 Rimin Gado 701
Bagwai 405 161,533 Bagwai 701
Gezawa 340 282,328 Gezawa 702
Gabasawa 605 211,204 Zakirai 702
Minjibir 416 219,611 Minjibir 702
Dambatta 732 210,474 Dambatta 702
Makoda 441 220,094 Makoda 702
Ghari 671 110,170 Kunchi 703
Bichi 612 278,309 Bichi 703
Tsanyawa 492 157,730 Tsanyawa 703
Shanono 697 139,128 Shanono 704
Gwarzo 393 183,624 Gwarzo 704
Karaye 479 144,045 Karaye 704
Rogo 802 227,607 Rogo 704
Kabo 341 153,158 Kabo 704
Northern Kano State 8,332 3,143,899 701–704
Bunkure 487 174,467 Bunkure 710
Kibiya 404 138,618 Kibiya 710
Rano 520 148,276 Rano 710
Tudun Wada 1,204 228,658 Tudun Wada 710
Doguwa 1,473 150,645 Riruwai 710
Madobi 273 137,685 Madobi 711
Kura 206 143,094 Kura 711
Garun Mallam 214 118,622 Garun Mallam 711
Bebeji 717 191,916 Bebeji 711
Kiru 927 267,168 Kiru 711
Sumaila 1,250 250,379 Sumaila 712
Garko 450 161,966 Garko 712
Takai 598 202,639 Takai 712
Albasu 398 187,639 Albasu 712
Gaya 613 207,419 Gaya 713
Ajingi 714 172,610 Ajingi 713
Wudil 362 188,639 Wudil 713
Warawa 360 131,858 Warawa 713
Dawakin Kudu 384 225,497 Dawakin Kudu 713
Southern Kano State 11,554 3,410,922 710 to 713

Demographics

According to the 2006 census, Kano State had a population of 9,401,288.[full citation needed] Based on National Bureau of Statistics data, Kano is Nigeria's most populous state; Lagos State is second. The state is primarily inhabited by Hausa and Fulani people.

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1991 5,810,470—    
2006 9,401,288+61.8%
2022 15,462,200+64.5%
source:

Languages

The state's official languages are Hausa and Fulfulde.[failed verification]

Notable people

Politics

The capital city is Kano. Kano's state government is led by an elected governor who works closely with the state House of Assembly. Like all state governors, they are elected with a modified two-round system. To be elected in the first round, a candidate must receive a plurality of the vote and over 25 percent of the vote in at least two-thirds of the state's LGAs. If no candidate reaches this threshold, a second round of voting is held between the two highest-ranking candidates.

See also

References

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Further reading