Okene

Okene is a town in the Nigerian state of Kogi. The town is based in a Local Government Area of the same name. Okene runs along the A2 highway. It had an area of 328 km2 and a population of 320,260 at the 2006 census.

The predominant people are the Ebira of central Nigeria and the Ebira language is spoken.

The postal code of the area is 264.

People
Okene is the birthplace of American Hockey League player and National Hockey League prospect Akim Aliu. Another prominent Nigerian hailing from Okene is Engineer Joseph Makoju, the former managing director of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria and currently the Honorary Adviser to Mr President on Electric Power and the Honorary Adviser to the President/CEO Dangote Group on Strategies. Okene is the birthplace of Governor Yahaya Bello and Governor-elect of Kogi State Ahmed Usman Ododo. Popular actress and entrepreneur Mercy Johnson also comes from Okene.

Education
The Federal College of Education is situated in Okene along Okene-Lokoja road. There is also a satellite campus of the Kogi State Polythecnic. There are several schools in the town, including high schools such as Abdulaziz Atta Memorial College Okene (AAMCO), Local Government Secondary School Ohiana (LGSS), College of Arabic and Islamic Studies Okene (CAISO), Solardad Group of Schools, located close to G.R.A Okene, Samaritan Nursery And Primary School, located at Ozuwaya beside Kekere Guest Palace Okene, and many other notable schools.

History
Okene Local Government Area was created in 1976 from the then Ebira Division by the Administration of General Olusegun Obasanjo, following the 1976 Local Government Reform. Ajaokuta and Ogori-Magongo LGAs were created from the old Okene LGA in 1991 and 1996 respectively. The people of Okene Local Government Area are a part of Ebira Tao people of the Central Senatorial District of Kogi State.

They are believed to have migrated from Jukun in the present day Taraba State and had a brief stopover in Idah before moving to their current location. The present Okene LGA is composed of Okene and Okengwe districts. There are 11 wards in the Local Government, namely Bariki, Otutu, Orietesu, Lafia/Obessa, Okene-Eba, Idoji, Onyukoko, Obehira-Eba, Obehira-Uvete, Abuga/Ozuja and Upogoro/Odenku wards. The population is predominantly Muslims, but a sizeable Christian minority also exists. To a great extent, there is a fusion of tradition and religions with only a negligible few still practicing exclusively traditional religion.

One of the most popular attractions in the town is the Azad Palace, which is the personal property of the Ohinoyi (King) of Ebiraland, Dr. Ado Ibrahim Atta, who is now late.