An Appraisal of the Urban Status of Uyo as a Capital City, 1987-2012

Abstract

By the end of the 19th century, Uyo like most Nigerian communities was a rural place. However, beginning from the early twentieth century, urbanization began to take roots at Uyo. Uyo had its own province which comprised Eket, Oron, Enyong, Opobo, and Uyo and all the major areas that constitute Akwa-Ibom State were administered from Uyo in colonial Nigeria. Akwa-Ibom State was created on 23rd September, 1987, with the promulgation of Decree 24 by General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida, the military president of Nigeria. The creation of the state marked the climax of a long and sustained struggle for a separate state by the people from the part of the former Cross River State then described as “Mainlandâ€; Uyo was chosen as the capital of Akwa-Ibom State because of its centrality and historical import.1 With the urban status, the city began to experience population growth, socio-economic restructuring, shift in labour mobility as well was infrastructural development. There has been no written work especially an appraisal by a professional historian and an Akwa-Ibomite on the growth of Uyo since it attained status as Akwa-Ibom state capital in 1987 and upon this, the paper set out to examine the changes that accompanied the rise of Uyo from village status to an urban city when it became the capital of Akwa-Ibom State by adopting the theory of intervening opportunities. It also identifies major changes that have taken place in Uyo and the strides achieved by successive governments in establishing various administrative machinery to ensure the development of the state and its capital as well as ease the processes of governance. The study is also designed to examine the factors that necessitated and facilitated the uncommon transformation of Uyo during the period. The qualitative method of research and enquiry was adopted where data collected which includes government reports, and relevant published literature are analysed and the content extracted for writing the paper. The paper finds that Uyo attracted a good number of migrants which comprised domestic servants, workers of all categories, elites, and providers of specialised services from far and near with the availability of wage employment, small-scale business, hospitals, water supply, electricity, good road network, educational institutions, and general services. It also finds that with its urban status, Uyo has recorded increased population in her urban centres and some nearby rural areas which has resulted in various impacts on the environmental systems; there have been changes in land cover and land use and these have opened new links and directions in political, economic, and social development projects and programmes.