Okrika

Okrika is a port town in Rivers State, South South Nigeria. The town is situated on an island south of Port Harcourt, making it a suburb of the much larger city.

Understand

Okrika has an estimated population of 312,300 at an average elevation of 7 meters. The average elevation of Okrika is 452 metres. It lies on the north of the Bonny River and on Okrika Island, 35 miles (56 km) upstream from the Bight of Bonny. The town can be reached by vessels of a draft of 29 feet (9 metres) or less. The languages spoken by the Okrika people is Ijaw Okrika. The local Kirike language is part of the ljoid group.

History

Okrika became the capital of the Okrika kingdom in the early 17th century and it actively dealt in slave trade. It served as a port for the exportation of palm oil after the abolition of the slave trade in the 1830s, but it was a less significant port facility than either Bonny (18 miles [46 km] south) or Opobo (32 miles [81 km] east-southeast). By 1912 Okrika was completely eclipsed by Port Harcourt, and it was not revived as a commercial port until 1965, when the nearby Alesa-Eleme oil refinery was completed and pipelines were built to a jetty on Okrika Island. Refined petroleum products are Okrika’s only significant exports.

The major occupation of Okrika people are fishing, farming and trading before the onset of oil and gas activities. The town has considerable local trade in fish, oil palm produce, locally processed salt, cassava (manioc), taro, plantains, and yams.

One of the significant exports of Okrika is refined petroleum products.

Before now, majority of the Okrika people were polytheist, they believe in several gods and deities. Others where animist who believed in many spirits including marine spirits and in the spirits of their ancestors. Finibeso was considered the chief god of the ancient Okrika people and his priest where most reverend among other priests. The Fenibeso shrine was most sacred and divine. Traditionally, no restrictions were imposed on the worship of any god, for there has always been a freedom of worship in Okrika. The Christian religion has emerged as the dominant religion, and the St Peters Cathedral is the most prominent religious building in Okrika. Traditional religion however still exists side by side with Christianity.

Climate

Okrika experiences distinct wet and dry seasons. The dry season typically runs from November to March, characterized by lower rainfall and relatively cooler temperatures while the wet season, on the other hand, lasts from April to October, with increased rainfall and higher humidity levels.

Get in

By plane

Visitors that intend to come into Okrika by Air have to make use of the airport in the state which is Port Harcourt International Airport.

• 1 Port Harcourt International Airport PHC  ^IATA, Omagwa, Port Harcourt. Port Harcourt International Airport is an international airport located in Omagwa, a suburb of Port Harcourt. The airport has two terminals for international and domestic flights. This airport is operated by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and hosts a few airlines flying domestic and international services. There are direct flights from Europe operated by Air France and Lufthansa. Airports that service this airport are: Aero Contractors, Africa's Connection STP, Air France, Air Peace, Arik Air, Cronos Airlines, Dana Air, Turkish Airlines and Lufthansa. The destinarions include: Lagos, Abuja, Enugu, Kasno, Istanbul, Frankfurt, Accra, Malabo, Libreville, Paris–Charles De Gaulle and Sao Tome. (updated Jun 2021)

By train

Visitors who intend to come into Okrika by train have to make use of Port Harcourt Rail Station.

• 2 Port Harcourt railway station (Station Road. Woji, Port Harcourt Rivers State). Rail service to Port Harcourt is limited to a once-weekly train from Kano, via Kaduna run by Nigeria Railway Corporation. This is an inter-state train station. (updated Jun 2021)

By boat

• From Nembe by ferry.

Get around

Ferries, taxi, carbs are the main form of transport to and from Okrika.

Do

Iria Festival is an ancient sacred festival used by Okrika people in celebrating chastity. It is an annual ceremony of womanhood that is held at a market square in Okrika dating back to the 16th century.

• Okrika Odum Festival. One of the famous festivals in Okrika. It is celebrated once every 10 years or at major occasions. The festival which displays a boa constrictor masquerade on water, is very colourful, flamboyant and quite expensive to celebrate. (updated Jun 2021)

Buy

Market

• 1 Okrika Central Market, Okrika Road, Abuloma. Okrika Central Market is in a safe place and a wide variety of products are available at cheap prices. (updated Jun 2021)

Supermarket

• 2 Miss Super Store, Bileme Biri, 1, ☏ +234 806 383 8070. Miss Super Store deals in food items such as rice, beans, garri, spaghetti, groceries, canned malt, vegetable oil and soft drinks. (updated Jun 2021)

Eat

• 1 Oba Polo Playground, Okrika, ☏ +234 708 868 7805. Oba Polo Playground is a restaurant and wine shop. (updated Jun 2021)

• 2 Snacks Bar Okrika, Abuloma Okrika, ☏ +234 817 972 5303. 7AM-7PM, Monday-Saturday. Snacks Bar Okrika deals in fresh fish pepper soup, meat pepper soup and other food items. (updated Jun 2021)

• 3 Pure and Prime Foods, No 10, Ring road Ogoloma street, Okrika Area, ☏ +234 810 536 4819. Daily 5AM-10PM. Pure and Prime Foods deals in delicious cakes, meat pies, small chops, spring rolls, etc. (updated Jun 2021)

Stay safe

Okrika is one of the centres of oil business in Nigeria. It is relatively a developed place and conducive for both foreigners and Nigerians that come for business. Some bars and clubs, nevertheless, seem relatively safe even during the night.

Go next

• Port Harcourt
• Eleme
• Bonny
• Nembe
• Sapele