KATSINA STATE

KATSINA STATE
Governor: Ibrahim Shema (PDP)

Date Created: 23rd September, 1987

Capital: Katsina

Major Towns: Daura, Funtua, Malumfashi, Bakori, Kankia.

The State was carved out of the old Kaduna State. It is bounded in the north by Niger Republic, in the east by Kano State, in the south by Kaduna State and by Sokoto State in the west.

There are 34 local government areas in the state namely: Katsina, Zango-Daura, Mai- Aduwa, Mashi, Kaita, Ingawa, Kankiya, Dutsin-Ma, Matazu, Safana, Musawa, Kankara, Malumfashi, Kafur-Danja, Funtua, Bakori, Faskari, Sandamu, Dandume, Kasuda, Raure, Dan-Musa Dutse, Charanchi, Sabuwa, Jibiya, Batsari, Kurafi, Batagarawa, Rimi, Mani and Bindawa. The indigenes are Hausa and Fulani with pockets of other ethnic groups such as the Ibos and Yorubas.

The state government in its bid to provide effective and comprehensive health care services for all and sundry expanded and upgraded all existing health centres. Rural health centres in Bakori and Faskari have been converted into General Hospitals. The Government also constructed the Katsina Specialist Hospital in its-effort to provide special health care services. There is a children's hospital located at Malumfashi.

Katsina State Government attaches a lot of importance to education. Scholarships are awarded to deserving indigenes to study relevant courses in institutions of higher learning at home and abroad.

In the field of special education, adequate plans have been made to provide each Local Government with special schools for the blind. The state has also established an Education Resource Centre with Headquarters at Dutsin-Ma. The Centre has the responsibility of inspecting schools, designing and developing curriculum and ensuring effective supervision of teaching in schools.

The state's industrial policy objectives include improving living standard, provision of regular employment, balanced industrial growth through establishment of industries in rural areas. Katsina state has large deposit of kaolin and asbestos and other needed minerals for good industrial take off.

Katsina is one of the few states in the country where crops are grown all the year round. Apart from farming during the rainy season, dry season farming is done along river banks and along the numerous dams built by the State and Federal Governments.

Due to the vast arable land which nature has bestowed on the State, it is currently playing a leading role in commodity/food production namely: cotton, groundnut, millet, guinea corn, maize, rice, wheat and vegetables. Government's encouragement and general incentives to both large and small scale as well as peasant farming over the year, has been quite commendable.

Katsina city is a tourist attraction because of the wall that surrounds it with its seven different gates. The wall was built about 900 years ago during the reign of King Murabus. The Emirs palaces in Katsina and Daura are also tourist attractions because of their unique architectural structure.

The Katsina Teacher's College built in 1922 is the oldest institution of learning in the northern states. Its main attraction is the red-baked city mud with which it was built.

Another important tourist attraction is the Gobarau Minaret built about 300 years ago. It was built of baked clay and mud and has been a thing of wonder to the inhabitants of the city. Legend has it that in those days, because of its height, it was used for surveillance purposes from where warriors could see enemies advancing on the ancient city.