Ngala is a local government area of Borno State,

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, adjacent to the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

with

Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...

. Its headquarters are in the town of Gamboru Ngala. It has an area of 1,465 km and a population of 237,071 at the 2006 census. The

postal code A postal code (also known locally in various English-speaking countries throughout the world as a postcode, post code, PIN or ZIP Code) is a series of letters or digits or both, sometimes including spaces or punctuation, included in a postal a ...

of the area is 611. It is one of the sixteen LGAs that constitute the Dikwa Emirate, a traditional state located in Borno State, Nigeria.

Geology

Ngala is situated in the east central area of the state. It is not far from the Chad Basin, which has been a structural depression since the

Tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...

period. It is blessed with vast fertile lands of sandy-loam to clay soil types, where crops like wheat, rice, and vegetables are grown under irrigated conditions.

Vegetation and soil

This local government area is blessed with a vast fertile land of sandy-loam to clay soil types, where crops like wheat, rice, and vegetables are grown under irrigated conditions. The land is characterized by a sandy flat plain land with scanty vegetation from the central to the northern part, while to the south the soil is sandy loam to heavy clay, with uneven topography characterized by sand dust. The vegetation is moderate.

Land form, relief and drainage

The land in Ngala generally consists of plains which are covered by a superficial deposit of sand and clay. Rather there accumulation of sand due to the action of the prevailing winds in blowing the loose Sahara sand from the desert to fringe areas. The river Gnadda is the only river passing through the area. The rainfall obtained in Ngala is seasonal. The rainfall has it pick in the months of August and September. Mineral resources include

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

and

bentonite Bentonite () is an absorbent swelling clay consisting mostly of montmorillonite (a type of smectite) which can either be Na-montmorillonite or Ca-montmorillonite. Na-montmorillonite has a considerably greater swelling capacity than Ca-m ...

Socioeconomic

Almost eighty-five percent (85%) of the people of the study area are farmers, herdsmen and fishermen. Agriculture is the pivot of the state's economy. Ngala has enormous agricultural and livestock development potential and is a large livestock centre. Its major cash crops include: groundnut,

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...

cowpea The cowpea (''Vigna unguiculata'') is an annual herbaceous legume from the genus ''Vigna''. Its tolerance for sandy soil and low rainfall have made it an important crop in the semiarid regions across Africa and Asia. It requires very few inputs, ...

. Other crops are wheat, rice, and watermelon. Some crops in Ngala are irrigated.

People

The people in study area are largely Kanuri,

Hausa Hausa may refer to: * Hausa people, an ethnic group of West Africa * Hausa language, spoken in West Africa * Hausa Kingdoms, a historical collection of Hausa city-states * Hausa (horse) or Dongola horse, an African breed of riding horse See also ...

Fulani The Fula, Fulani, or Fulɓe people ( ff, Fulɓe, ; french: Peul, links=no; ha, Fulani or Hilani; pt, Fula, links=no; wo, Pël; bm, Fulaw) are one of the largest ethnic groups in the Sahel and West Africa, widely dispersed across the region. ...

-speaking people. Most are farmers, while a few practice fishing activities.

Towns

* Gamboru Ngala, the capital * Wulgo town, located very close to the coast of Chad

References

Local Government Areas in Borno State Populated places in Borno State {{bornoNG-geo-stub