ABUJA FEDERAL CAPITAL OF NIGERIA

ABUJA FEDERAL CAPITAL OF NIGERIA

Abuja, city in central Nigeria, capital of the country, located in the
Federal Capital Territory. Abuja officially replaced Lagos as the
capital in December 1991, after 15 years of planning and construction. The
city is located in a scenic valley of rolling grasslands in a relatively
undeveloped, ethnically neutral area. Thus, planners hoped to create a
national city where none of Nigeria's social and religious groups
would be dominant. A large hill known as Aso Rock provides the backdrop for
the city’s government district, which is laid out along three axes
representing the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. Government
agencies began moving into the new capital in the early 1980s, as
residential neighborhoods were being developed in outlying areas. The
University of Abuja was founded in 1988. Abuja has an international airport
and is linked to other cities in Nigeria by a network of highways.