Nsukka; The Small City of Red Earth

The Small City of Red Earth 

You’ve probably read of Nsukka in fiction books. Like Jo’burg, it is not a state capital but its importance to the eastern part of Nigeria is superbly interesting. Not because it first had a university in the east or the production of palm oil during the colonial era, but the weather. And the pastoral life is such that endears a creative mind.

A skyline view of this small city lacks intricacies in planning and high rise buildings. It does not have a modern day cinema or any world class luxury attraction but if the arrangement of trees, large worship centres, a couple of nightclubs and the contribution of peace; less death from accidents and gun shots make the list, then Nsukka is enviable. 

Unlike Jo’burg, its population is around 300,000 people, using the 2006 national census figure. And its architecture is nonexistent. But what Nsukka lacks in structure, it compensates in kind. The people are warm at heart and welcoming. They could be grossly respectful and hardworking. Nsukka is like the courtesy hub of the eastern region of Nigeria. And culturally, the Nsukka heritage is beautiful. Rich in folklore, the locals are still very much in sync with the dialect which is a variation of the Igbo language unlike other emerging cities that are losing the uniqueness of language.   

While Jo’burg is outrageously developed and thrives in gold and attracts western investments, Nsukka’s growth has been remarkably snail-paced. If you left fifteen years ago and visited again in 2015, you’d probably have not missed a thing. Maybe a new bank would have opened up a branch but speaking of transformative change, in Nsukka, it is more individualistic than communal. The government roads are still helplessly deplorable.  And the link-roads are still narrower than a runway model’s pair of trousers. 

It would be unfair to expect much from Nsukka, just like Nigeria. Politics have not particularly helped it. And the cities that I could rank it with were built on dedication, sincerity and consciousness. Nsukka’s exports are rather subliminal yet fundamental. When it is not pure honey treated by dedicated hands or the locally made, protein rich okpa, served hot, it is predominantly educational. Nsukka has more university educated people than many small cities in Nigeria. The University of Nigeria is one of the many reasons its economy has remained viable.

Nsukka does not exist in isolation. Its growth is contributively an effort from neighbouring towns. Traders on their way to Abuja or Benue use the high way. This has been particularly helpful to roadside traders. Obollo-Afor, one of the neighbouring towns once thrived in commercial sales of palm oil used its Ogige market. Though not exhaustively diminished, the trade still leaps, begging for more attention especially from the young people who are targeting cities outside the east for business and jobs. 

Lovers of nature and heights may love Nsukka for the hills, the green and the simple life devoid of rush, constant quarrels under scotching sun as seen in Lagos make this place a haven. But if you are not employed by the banks or the university in Nsukka, chances are that you are a student or a trader in the Ogige market trying to keep pace with the world.

The hills in Nsukka serve as meditation points for anyone who cared. No tourist would visit Enugu and feels satisfied without a glimpse of Nsukka. Its essence is wrapped around the friendly people, the sight of freshly harvested fruits and the low cost of living. Nsukka is about an hour drive from the state capital which shares same name with the state, Enugu. This city is not necessary commercial but it thrives. Sometimes it is location for Nollywood filmmakers.   

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie set her first novel in Nsukka. In Purple Hibiscus, Kambili lives in the university campus with her parents, like the writer when she was younger.

To explore the serenity of Nsukka, the university campus is the best spot. While the government reserve areas have sit-out spots, the campus is usually calm, safer and enchanting to the muse. The poet, Christopher Okigbo and the novelist, Chinua Achebe relished the hills and the red earth of Nsukka. The late Nnamdi Azikiwe also lived in Nsukka.

The drop in the temperature of the weather at night, the expanse of space and the easy life is what characterise Nsukka. For someone who moved from Port Harcourt, a commercial city, in 2012, Nsukka is ideal for studies. When I first visited, it was below what the Garden City offered in nightlife, entertainment and varieties of food but the uniqueness of any place can only be fully appreciated if the difference is not called weakness but uniqueness. 

If an escape from a thriving world of noise is what you desire, Nsukka offers a chunk of sanity. The traders are sincere with prices; they don’t make you bargain forever before you are granted sales. And the town has fewer cars and the few roads are never congested unless the university has an important event.