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Bayelsa State is a state located in Nigeria, situated in the country's southern region. It is significant as part of Nigeria's oil-producing Niger Delta area, making it economically important to the nation.
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Bayelsa is a state in the South South region of Nigeria, located in the core of the Niger Delta. Bayelsa State was created in 1996 and was carved out from Rivers State, making it one of the newest states in the federation. The capital, Yenagoa, is susceptible to high risk of annual flooding. It shares a boundary with Rivers State to the east and Delta State to the north across the Niger River for 17 km and the Forçados River for 198 km, with the waters of the Atlantic Ocean dominating its southern borders. It has a total area of 10,773 square kilometres (4,159 sq mi). The state comprises eight local government areas: Ekeremor, Kolokuma/Opokuma, Yenagoa, Nembe, Ogbia, Sagbama, Brass and Southern Ijaw. Bayelsa state is regarded as the least populous state in Nigeria with an estimated population of over 3,700,000 as of 2024. Being in the Niger Delta, Bayelsa State has a riverine and estuarine setting, with bodies of water within the state making the development of significant road infrastructure, quite difficult.
The state is the primary and ancestral home of the Ijaw people, from where migration took place to other Ijaw settlements. The languages spoken are Ijaw, Ogbia, Nembe, Epie, along with Igbo, Isoko and Urhobo. The state is also the ancestral home of the Urhobo people in the Sagbama local government area.