Ondo

Ondo State exists because cocoa and bitumen demanded a Sunshine State. Created in 1976 from Western Region, Ondo produces 40% of Nigeria's cocoa exports - making it the nation's chief cocoa state. But beneath the soil lies even greater wealth: an estimated 42 billion barrels of oil-equivalent bitumen, making Ondo the epicenter of Nigeria's tar sand deposits. The state also has active petroleum production, and together oil and agriculture generate 90% of GDP. Akure, the capital, was founded around 1150 AD by Omoremilekun Asodeboyede, a descendant of Oduduwa, and is developing into a commercial and industrial center with a federal university of technology. The Yoruba subgroups here - Idanre, Akoko, Akure, Ikale, Ilaje, Ondo, Owo - share traditions of urban living that give the state high proportions of town dwellers. The 75-kilometer Atlantic coastline, Nigeria's longest unbroken shore, supports a planned deep-sea port two kilometers offshore with an adjacent Free Trade Zone. Cotton and tobacco from the north, cacao from the center, rubber and timber from the south create agricultural diversity. By 2026, bitumen extraction and the deep-sea port will determine if Ondo adds petrochemicals to its agricultural export identity.