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23-571: Minna is a city in Middle Belt Nigeria . It is the capital city of Niger State , one of Nigeria's 36 federal states . Its original two major ethnic groups are the Gbagyi and the Nupe peoples Archaeological evidence suggests settlement in the area dates back to about 47,000–37,000 years ago. Muslim culture filtered into Minna by way of the ancient Saharan trade routes much later, and

46-602: A centre for ethno-religious disputes and violence since the 1990s. The Jos Forum Inter-Communal Dialogue process spanned 16 months from August 2013 - December 2014, and refers to a peace process undertaken by communities living in Jos that concluded in a “Declaration of Commitment to Peace”. In 2018 violence escalated, with battles for scarce resources leading to over 500 deaths and 50 towns being destroyed. The clashes were largely between Muslim Fulani pastoralists and Christian Berom farmers. Over 300,000 people have been displaced by

69-611: A transition zone between Northern and Southern Nigeria. It is composed of the southern half of the defunct Northern Region of Nigeria, now comprising mostly the North Central and parts of the North East and North West geopolitical zones , and is characterised by its lack of a clear majority ethnic group. It is also the location of Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory . The eminence of manifold minority groups, to some degree, constitutes an ethno-linguistic barrier in

92-444: A typical Middle Belt tropical savanna climate ( Köppen Aw ) with two seasons: an arid, dusty, harmattan -dominate dry season from November to April and a humid, oppressive wet season dominated by monsoonal air masses from May to October. Temperatures are hot to sweltering year round, except at the height of the wet season when air temperatures are merely very warm but the high humidity makes it equally or more uncomfortable than

115-401: Is a co-educational secondary school for children aged 11-16, Grade 7-12, i.e from JSS 1 to JSS 3 and SS 1 to SS 3. The school offers both IGCSE and Nigerian Curriculum. It is a predominantly boarding school with a small day student population. 9°37′20″N 6°32′21″E  /  9.62210°N 6.53914°E  / 9.62210; 6.53914 This Nigeria school-related article is

138-463: Is also extensively cultivated throughout the city. The economy also supports cattle trading, brewing, shea nut processing and gold mining. There are also FMCGs such as PZ Cussons that deal in toilet soaps, baby products, medicaments and so on. Traditional industries and crafts in Minna include leather work and metalworking . Minna is connected to neighbouring cities by road. Abuja , the capital of

161-585: Is located in central Nigeria, and interacting with both the North and the South with large population of both Northern and Southern peoples, the Middle-Belt is always in the best position to interpret the North to the South, and the South to the North... What the Middle-Belt seeks therefore, is to advance its former stand has been addressed as North Central Zone to self identification as Middle-Belt region, and widen

184-758: Is no dominant ethnic group, but among the larger groups as of 1991 are: Tiv 5.1 million, Nupe 1.8 million. These ethnic groups are represented by advocacy organizations such as CONAECDA . Minorities in Nigeria tend to be dominated by the three largest ethnic groups, the Hausa of the North, the Yoruba of the Southwest and the Igbo of the Southeast. Surrounded by divergent religious, economic, and cultural histories,

207-509: The Apostolic Church and many others. Minna is the home state of Nigeria's former military President Gen. Ibrahim B. Babangida , and of former Head of State Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar . Based on research carried out, it was reported that Minna is being affected by land pollution caused by non-proper disposal of solid waste products. This has cause several disease such as Malaria fever, Yellow fever, Lassa fever, etc. Minna has

230-640: The Federal Capital Territory , alongside Southern Kaduna , Southern Bauchi , Southern Kebbi , Southern Gombe , Southern Yobe State and Southern Borno , all culturally considered as part of the Middle Belt. The yearnings for the creation of the Middle Belt region in Nigeria had been a burning issue, as even groups like the United Middle-Belt Youth Congress (UMYC) demand for a separate identity from

253-522: The "Middle Zone". Some scholars argue that rather than a simple geographic definition, the Middle Belt represents a religious and cultural amalgamation of non-Hausa Christians. As to what the Middle-Belt entails, three top members of the Middle-Beltern struggle had this to say as presented in the pan-Middle-Beltern magazine, New Vision in December 2000: The Middle-Belt true to its name,

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276-460: The "North" by the creation of the Middle Belt region as a federal unit within Nigeria. The population of the Middle Belt as of 1991, was about 17.3 million but now predicted to be over 45 million people living in the middle belt region, with a predominant Christian population of 65%, Muslim population of 25% and Animist population of 10% of the total population. The Middle Belt consists of many ethnic groups speaking over 230 languages. There

299-685: The Middle Belt has been the melting pot where small and large ethno-religious groups in Nigeria have long coexisted, but where they have also increasingly collided over land, resources, identity and political power. The result is a mixture of recurring conflicts and occasional political unity and solidarity amongst these highly differentiated peoples. An example for the latter was the United Middle Belt Congress that emerged following Nigeria's independence from Britain in 1960. In particular, Jos city in Plateau State has been

322-429: The Middle-Belt are not in the North and cannot therefore be northerners...Since it pleases God to distinguish the people he created along geographic, racial, national, ethnic and language divide, it is equally good to identify and call them as such and this is the wisdom behind the struggle for a separate identity for the people of the Middle-Belt. The definition of the Middle Belt areas are subject to great debate due to

345-661: The city contains many mosques including Minna Central Mosque and Muslim organizations like the Islamic Education Trust , Minna, Muslim Students' Society of Nigeria - Minna Area Council (MSSN-MNAC), Da'watu-Ilallahi-Wa-Rasulihi Association (DAWRA), etc. Sharia law is practiced. Christianity is the second most practiced religion in the city . Popular churches include the Faith Church , Grace Baptist Church , Nupe Kalvari Churches , Anglican Churches , ECWA churches , Baptist churches , Victory Christian Church ,

368-420: The country and draws a separation between the principally Muslim North and the mainly Christian south. The region is a convergence of these cultural domains and maintains a tremendous degree of ethno-linguistic diversity. Afro-Asiatic , Nilo-Saharan , and Niger–Congo languages are all spoken, which are three of the primary African language families. In the 1920s, it was described by Melzian (1928:496) as

391-1018: The country, is only 150 km away. Minna is also connected by railroad to both Kano in the north and Ibadan and Lagos in the south. The city is served by Minna Airport . Minna has many educational institutions, including: Fati Lami Abubakar Institute for Legal and Administrative Studies , The Federal University of Technology Minna , Niger state school of health , Niger state school of nursing and Midwifery , Niger state university of Education among others. With many high schools as Father O'Connell Science College, Minna , Waziri Primary School, Chiroma Primary School, D.S.S Limawa, Kowa Schools, El-Bethel Academy, Jocis Schools, Hilltop Model School, Mypa schools, Himma international school, Police secondary school, El-Amin International School , FOMWAN Schools, New Horizon College , Divine Excellence International Schools and Brighter International Schools, among many others. The above-mentioned schools are

414-450: The hotter dry season. Due to the monsoon, summer (June, July, August) is cooler than spring, fall and winter. The current trend of literary and book art festivals in Nigeria, in the last 15yrs, could be traced to Minna, Niger State, who started her literary and arts festival in May 1995. Cotton , guinea corn (sorghum), Maize and ginger are the main agricultural products of the city. Yam

437-592: The people of the Middle-Belt have been held under dehumanizing conditions, they are treated as third rated citizen, little or no regard is accorded their culture and tradition, while their so-called masters wallowed in affluence enjoying the best of everything to the detriment of the Middle-Belter... Accordingly, these people from the Middle-Belt have the right to discontinue their association with those who enslave them and hold their destiny in their hands. On another flash, Onesimus Enesi added that: The people of

460-535: The pioneering high schools in Minna. Minna has many primary health clinics with the General Hospital, Minna serving as the general health care. 9°36′50″N 6°33′25″E  /  9.61389°N 6.55694°E  / 9.61389; 6.55694 Middle Belt The Middle Belt (also spelt Middle-Belt ) or Central Nigeria is a term used in human geography to designate a belt region stretching across central Nigeria longitudinally and forming

483-620: The presence of significant number of ethnic Hausa , Fulani , Kanuri and Igbo groups . In addition, the Yoruba who are the predominant ethnic group in Kwara and Kogi have a strong affinity with the larger Yoruba body and frequently prefer not to be associated with the Middle Belt identity. States of Nigeria which are generally referred to as belonging to the Middle Belt are: old Plateau (now Plateau and Nasarawa ), old Gongola (now Adamawa and Taraba ), Niger , Kwara , Kogi , Benue ,

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506-479: The scope of the informal sector which to this day cements the platform of our national unity, so that our elite in the Middle-Belt behave in the spirit of national unity, as adequately and persistently demonstrated by the grassroot people over the years. The veteran journalist, Chief Bayo Joseph, Media Consultant and Chairman, Editorial Board of the New Vision, on his own part said: Since amalgamation of 1914,

529-554: The violence. The New Horizon College Minna New Horizons College was established in 1995 by the Founding Trustees of the Islamic Education trust, Alhaji Sheikh Ahmed Lemu (LLB,OFR) and Hajiya B. Aisha Lemu (MON, FNAE). The college was set up to meet the need for high quality Western and Islamic education. It was to set up to serve as a model for qualitative Western combined with Islamic education. it

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