*34 local government areas, as listed in the First Schedule, Part I of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999. The list is constitutional, not administrative: a state may create development areas, but only an alteration of the Constitution can create a local government that draws from the Federation Account. Section 162(5)–(8) routes each council's share through a State Joint Local Government Account controlled by the state government — the arrangement the Supreme Court ruled against in Attorney-General of the Federation v. Attorney-General of Abia State & 35 Ors (11 July 2024), holding that allocations must go directly to democratically elected councils.*
The 34 councils#
- Bakori
- Batagarawa
- Batsari
- Baure
- Bindawa
- Charanchi
- Dandume
- Danja
- Dan Musa
- Daura
- Dutsi
- Dutsin-Ma
- Faskari
- Funtua
- Ingawa
- Jibia
- Kafur
- Kaita
- Kankara
- Kankia
- Katsina
- Kurfi
- Kusada
- Mafara (Mai'Adua)
- Malumfashi
- Mani
- Mashi
- Matazu
- Musawa
- Rimi
- Sabuwa
- Safana
- Sandamu
- Zango
Notes on the roster#
34 LGAs. Batsari, Jibia, Safana, Dan Musa, Faskari and Sabuwa form the belt worst hit by armed banditry since 2018; several have negotiated their own local truces with armed groups in the absence of a federal one.
References
Sources#
- Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), First Schedule Part I
- INEC local government delimitation register
- Supreme Court of Nigeria, SC/CV/343/2024, judgment of 11 July 2024 (local government financial autonomy)