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'Aba' is a city in southern Nigeria, located on the Aba River. Originally settled by the Ngwa Tribe of the Igbo people, it eventually became the administrative center of Britain's colonial government. It is a major commercial center in Abia State in south-eastern Nigeria. In 1901, the British founded a military post in it, and in 1915, a railroad was constructed to link it to Port Harcourt, which transported agricultural goods such as palm oil and palm kernels; in 1929, it was the site of revolt by women, in protest of colonial taxation policy. In 1967, the capital of the short-lived secessionist state of Biafra was moved to Aba from Enugu as Nigerian troops advanced into Biafra. The city of Aba has a current population estimate of 966,001.
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It is surrounded by oil wells which separate it from the city of Port Harcourt, a distance of about 30 km; a 30 kilometer pipeline powers Aba with gas from the Imo River natural gas repository. Physically it is well connected, with roads leading to it from Port Harcourt, Owerri, Umuahia, Ikot Ekpene, and Ikot Abasi^[2].
Aba is a commercial city and has the highest number of small scale industries — it is noted for its famous Ariaria market. It is very densely populated and has a high ratio of artisans in its population. As a result of an overwhelming influx of people — resulting from sectarian crisis in the north — in the last three years, the local authorities are no longer able to manage the waste generated. This has made Aba the dirtiest city in Nigeria where people live alongside heaps of garbage. Aba is nicknamed "Enyimba City" which means Elephant city.
Aba is known for making its own products such as dresses, bags, and shoes which are known as "Aba made". However, many people view these products are being cheap and not well made.

Contents

Shopping

Education

Health

Transport

Sports

References

Shopping

In Aba, there are numerous shopping centers, including Ariaria Market, Ahia Ohuru, Umungasi and Cemetery markets.

Education

Home to a diverse range of primary and secondary schools, Aba has a significant student population. Some of the well known primary schools include Aba-Owerri Rd, Santa Maria, Cameroun Barracks Primary School Aba,Golf Course, St Bridget, and Abayi Umuocham. There are also a number of well known secondary schools like GTC, Eziama Boys, Ngwa High School, Wilcox memorial secondary school (Comprehensive secondary school, Ogbor hill Aba) Community Girls Secondary School, Secondary Technical School,Nigerian Christain seminary School,Boys Technical College [BTC] and many more. There are also numerous private schools with the popular ones as Evangel Seminary Ovom 1 Aba,Dority International Secondary School, St Bridget High School and so more The Abia State Polytechnic School of Health Technology and the Abia State University Teaching Hospital are all situated in Aba.

Health

Aba has a number of hospitals including Abia State University Teaching Hospital, Wimpole Clinic headed by Sir (Dr) D. S. C. Emeruem, and a number of well run private hospitals.

Transport

The city is served by a station on Nigerian Railways. Large network of private transportation like the big luxury buses that ferry people daily to various parts of the nation. Second only to Onitsha in mass transportation daily volume in the eastern part of Nigeria.Other transportation used are motorcyclists generally called Okada.(derived from an old airliner "Okada Air")
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Sports

Enyimba International Football Club of Aba popularly called “The Peoples Elephant” is the town's most popular football club. Enyimba FC's entire winning track-record is the richest among all Nigerian football clubs. With 2 CAF Champions League Trophies, and a number of trophies, won locally, the club is currently ranked 2nd in the CAF Club Rankings and unarguably the most successful in Nigeria with millions of fans across the continent.

References

1. "The World Gazetteer"
2. "Aba." ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. 20 January 2007