Mambilla Plateau…temperate and tropical melting point of Africa

 

Tour attraction in Nigeria is not just about festivals and carnivals; nature has its wonder spread across the country.

  OYASAF team visited one of such great places known as Mambilla Plateau, where nature’s uncommon climate is bestowed on a people, who are practically shut out from the rest of us.

 The Mambilla Plateau is a high-grassland with an average elevation of about 1,524 metres (5,000 ft) above sea level, making it the highest plateau in Nigeria. The plateau, which has an undulating landscape, free of insects, also has temperate climate within a tropical region.

Located in the highland region of Taraba State, Nigeria, Mambilla Plateau  also includes Chappal Waddi mountain- considered as the highest point in Nigeria and probably in West Africa with an average height of about 2,419 metres (7,936 ft) above sea level.

Part of the Mambilla Plateau. PHOTO: BY OYASAF DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHER, OGUNTIMEHIN ARIYO.

As soon as one reaches the top of the mountain, the feeling of heat experienced at the foot of the mountain disappears, and you will be greeted by fresh and very chilling breeze, blowing across the plateau.

Mambilla Plateau is shared by people of Nigeria and Cameroon who live in the Taraba State end and Tikar Plain in Cameroon, as well as in several small villages further north towards the town of Banyo. These people regard themselves as a group with a common identity, despite the different nationalities.

At an altitude of some 700m, these villages are in a different ecological zone where oil palms grow and gallery of forest is found. The Mambila language is a congeries of dialects and related languages.

Mambilla people returning from farm.PHOTO: BY OYASAF DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHER, OGUNTIMEHIN ARIYO

• Features
• Location
• Gallery

Mambila plateau features unique physical and climatic conditions for human habitation and cattle breeding. During the 19th century, the highlands became the main source of slaves for the Muslim Fulani Kingdoms of Banyo and Gashaka. Despite their strong resistance, the Mambila villages fell one after the other to the supremacy of the Fulani aggressions.

The plateau which developed on basement complex rocks measures about 96km along its curved length and 40km wide, and bounded by an escarpment which is about 900m high in some places.

The Mambilla Plateau produces the major water channels from which other outlets in Taraba State take their source. Rivers Benue, Donga and Taraba are these dominant water channels which flow across the Muri plains to feed the entire state. Mambila plateau offers attractive settings, well worth a visit. It has cattle ranches, tea plantations and rolling, grassy hills. .

Time to visit Mambilla
Mambilla plateau has some of the coolest climatic condition in Nigeria with daytime temperatures sometimes reaching around 40 degree C. The driest months are from December to January with relative humidity dropping to about 15 percent, while the wet season usually starts from August till September.

Inside Mambilla Settlement. PHOTO: BY OYASAF DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHER, OGUNTIMEHIN ARIYO