Plateau the Beautiful

Hi folks,
This is a time to share my experience during my NYSC days in the cold region of Nigeria; Plateau State, a lovely state with wonderful features, rocky and serene landscapes, why not join me take a tour into this land that host the famous Institute of Policy Strategic Studies(NIPSS), where the big wigs always visit to get more beefed up for various leadership roles:

Jos Plateau is on a tropical highland, near the center of Nigeria. The plateau covers an area of about 26,889 sq km and lies at a general altitude of about 1,300 m (about 4,300 ft). It is surrounded by high plains with elevations of between 600 and 900 m (2,000 and 3,000 ft) and consists mainly of deeply eroded remnant volcanic rock, mostly granites.

It shares borders with Benue, Nasarrawa, Kaduna, Taraba Bauchi and Gombe State.
Temperatures in the plateau tend to be 4 Celsius degrees (8 Fahrenheit degrees) cooler than those on the coast, and the average annual rainfall of about 1,300 mm (about 50 in) is considerably higher than that in the surrounding lowland.

The weather is always cold between the months of December and February as a result of the charlatan winds even though the temperature appear highest between march and April, plateau weather remain the coldest though situated in the tropical zone, its temperature climate is nearly equivalent to Europe and the United States of America and this weather condition accounts for the concentration of expatriates in the State compared to other state of the federation.

Headwaters of rivers feeding the Niger River, the Benue River, and Lake Chad radiate from here. The original savanna woodland and forest have been cleared and largely replaced by open grassland and farms. The plateau is known for its waterfalls, several of which have been harnessed to provide power for the region's mining industries.

Alluvial tin and niobium deposits have supported a modern mining and smelting industry in the Jos Plateau since the early 1900s. Mining activities has also brought an influx of whites and Nigerians to the plateau, profoundly changing local societies. During the same period the hill farmers have expanded into the lower elevations. It has a number of minerals resources which can be a catalyst for commercial development such as Cassiterite, Barytes Clay, Columbite, Tin, Gemstones, Galena, Quartz, Felspar and Tantalite.

The state has been rightly described as a miniature Nigeria because it consists of almost all the various tribes or ethnic group of Nigeria. It has over 30 ethnic groups each with a proud cultural heritage with no single group large enough to claim the majority position. Plateau people are accommodating that makes it possible for people of other tribe to live peacefully among the indigenes, some of these indigenes are; Birom, Ngas, Taroc, Goemai, Youm, Rukuba, Kwagalak, Piapung, Buji, Gashish, Chip ,Meryang, Ron-Kulere, Aten, Mwaghavul, Boggohm,Fier, Pyem, Jarawa, Naraguta, Irigwe, Montol, Jarawa, Mushere, Amo and so on. Each ethnic group has its own distinct language but as in every state of the federation English is the official language but Hausa has so much gain acceptability as a medium of communication and might soon overthrow the use of English in Plateau state.

A common feature among the ethnic groups in Plateau state is the strong attachment to dance culture and the performance of festivals, initiation rites and naming ceremonies, religious rituals and ancestral worship. Some of such festivals span through the year and are performed in Pankshin (Pusdung),Mangu(Pus Kaat),Shendam(Bit Goemui), Qua’an Pan(Panyam fishing festival) Local Government Areas of the State .

Cultural festivals include Afizere Culture Festival, Irigwae New year Celebration, Taroc Cultural day, Resettlement day, Goemai day Pu’us kang, Mushere Zarachi Festival, Nzem Berom, Puska at Pusdung, Thaar Cultural Community Festival, Ron Kulere Festival, Bogghom Cultural Festival to mention a few.

Apart from the cultural heritage modern day social life in Plateau state cannot be underemphasized, night life is so wonderful from the club Zero-eleven, to D’Makuba club, Bar Cardi, Zoo view, West of Mines, Stepps and various social centres and joints.

Commercial activities in Jos are always buzzing with the Old Terminus Market, Abuja Market, Kwarafa, Bukuru, Yandoya, Potatoes Market, Fari gada, Katako Market and so on; the cool upland is the only region in Nigeria that permits the cultivation of potatoes. This area is also a center of a dairy industry producing butter and cheese, and other agricultural produce of the state which includes yams, maize, guinea corn, carrot, Tomatoes, Groundnut, cowpea, Pepper, Acha (lunagy rice), Beniseed, Garden eggs, Okro, Cabbage, Beans, and a host of others including Cows, Chicken, Rabbits, and Dogs as livestock. With the emergence of recapitalization virtually all surviving banks has at least one branch in Plateau State.

Plateau state has 17 local Government areas which made up the whole state as a peaceful and a tourist abode, these LGA include: Barkin-Ladi with headquarter in Barkin-ladi, Bassa in Bassa, Bokkos in Bokkos, Jos North in Jos, Jos South in Bukuru, Jos East in Angware, Kanam in Dengi, Kanke in Kwal, Langtan North in Langtan, Langtan South in Mabudi, Mangu in Mangu, Mikang in Tunkus, Pankshin in Pankshin, Quan’pan in Doemak, Riyom in Riyom, Shendam in Shendam, and Wase in Wase.

Tourist attraction in the plateau include Assop falls and Riyom Rocks in Riyom LGA, Kura falls in Barkin-ladi, Wase Rock in Langtan, Kerang Volcano in Mangu, Kahwang Basalt Rocks in Bokkos, Pandam Game Reserve in Quan’pan, Miango river Gorge, Jos Wild-life Park, Rayfield Resort Lake and Shere hills in Jos South, Naraguta Leather works, Jos Museum, Jos Main market and the Lamingo Dam in Jos North LGA.