Ondo

Ondo State lies in south-western Nigeria along the Bight of Benin and is one of the country's principal cocoa-producing states, giving rise to its nickname, the "Sunshine State". Its capital, Akure, sits inland among the state's forested and hilly terrain, while the state's coastal districts around Ilaje and the Ese-Odo area extend to the Atlantic and contain oil-producing communities. Ondo State was created in 1976 from the former Western State and is home mainly to Yoruba subgroups, including the Akoko, Ondo, Ikale, Ilaje and Owo peoples, alongside Ijaw communities along the coast. The Idanre Hills, a dramatic range of granite outcrops near Idanre town, are among the state's best-known natural features and a site of long-standing settlement. Ondo combines agricultural, oil and forestry resources within a relatively compact area.

The towns that now make up Ondo State developed as Yoruba kingdoms with their own ruling dynasties, including Owo, historically an important centre of Yoruba art and craft with links to both Ife and Benin traditions, and Ondo town itself, associated with a branch of the Yoruba royal lineage. The Idanre Hills sheltered a fortified hilltop settlement whose inhabitants only fully relocated to the plains below in the twentieth century, and the old settlement remains a recognised historical site. The area came under British colonial administration as part of the Western Region in the early twentieth century, with cocoa cultivation, introduced in the late nineteenth century, becoming a major source of local income and drawing the region into export agriculture. Ondo State was created in February 1976, and in 1996 its coastal south-east was reorganised to become the basis of Ekiti State to the north-east, though Ondo retained its Atlantic coastline and oil-bearing areas around Ilaje.

Ondo State occupies a stretch of south-western Nigeria running from the Atlantic coast in the south to hilly, forested terrain further inland, bordered by Ekiti and Kwara states to the north, Osun and Ogun states to the west, Edo and Delta states to the east, and the Bight of Benin to the south. The Idanre Hills, a range of ancient granite inselbergs reaching several hundred metres, dominate the landscape near Idanre town. The coastal belt around Ese-Odo and Ilaje is low-lying, criss-crossed by creeks and mangrove swamp, and is part of the Niger Delta's western fringe, containing oil and gas installations. Inland, the vegetation is predominantly tropical rainforest, supporting cocoa, rubber and timber production, with a climate marked by a long wet season and high humidity.

Cocoa has long been central to Ondo State's economy, with the state ranking among Nigeria's leading producers alongside Oyo and Osun, and cocoa processing and marketing remain important economic activities in towns such as Ondo and Ile-Oluji. Rubber, oil palm, cassava and timber are also cultivated or harvested across the state's forest zone. The coastal local government areas of Ilaje and Ese-Odo host oil and gas production facilities that link Ondo State to Nigeria's petroleum sector, alongside fishing communities along the Atlantic coast. Akure, the state capital, serves as a commercial and administrative centre with markets, banking and light manufacturing. The state government has promoted agro-industrial projects tied to cocoa processing as a route to add value to raw produce before export.