Ikot Ekpene

Ikot Ekpene, also called the Raffia City, is a historic town in Akwa Ibom State in southern Nigeria and the political and cultural capital of the Annang people. It lies on the A342 highway that parallels the coast, between Calabar to the southeast and Aba to the west, with the state capital Uyo on the same road just to the east. The town is a regional centre of commerce, known for palm oil, kernels, raffia fibre and raffia wine, ground crops such as yams, cassava, taro and corn, and above all for basket weaving, sculpture and raffia cane furniture, which gave it its nickname. Its population is mostly Annang with a small number of Igbo traders and Hausa suya vendors. Ikot Ekpene is also the seat of the Catholic diocese in the region and hosts the Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic, Ritman University and the FutureLabs innovation hub.