A few days ago I visited Iseyin (a part of Oke Ogun) on some field work and had a good time on the journey.
Oke Ogun is a region in Oyo State Nigeria, consisting of over 30 towns.
The central part of Oke Ogun is about 150km away from Ibadan.
Oke Ogun is known for the lush arable land and the rocky plains. It can be considered the food hub of Oyo State as farming and livestock is a very integral part of daily life in the region.
Iseyin can be accessed via 3 major routes, including the Iseyin-Moniya-Ibadan route, the Iseyin-Oyo route and the Abeokuta-Igboora route.
The Iseyin-Moniya-Ibadan route was just concluded a few years back and is therefore the smoothest ride into the region.
Iseyin can be considered a border town of Oke Ogun.
The journey to Iseyin is about 92km from the central part of Ibadan and would take about 1 hr 45mins.
The renovated Iseyin-Moniya-Ibadan route
The dualized entry road into Iseyin
While taking the journey to the region, one cannot help but see the Greenland on both sides of the roads, some cultivated while others are virgin. These lands span several kilometres along the journey, and were only interrupted by few settlements, institutions or cultivated land.
Arable lands on the journey to Iseyin
The standout scenery for me were the rocky plains and 'mountains'. They stood out in the afternoon sun and made the vegetation around them even more beautiful. We were told that there are more of them if we decided to go farther into Oke Ogun and its environs.
Some settlers use some of these rocks (the accessible ones) as a platform for drying cassava products (called 'Ege' in Yoruba Language).
There are also a number of notable settlements as you journey through.
Some are predominantly markets, some are homes for farmers and cattle readers.
When we entered Iseyin Town proper we still saw some more lush green, despite being in the middle of town. This shows how much of vegetation this region has and how farming is central to their way of life.
Nigeria despite being riddled with economic problems, insecurity and lack of political will has a lot of arable land that can be used for large scale Agriculture, which can generate significant amounts of income for the country. There are so many virgin lands with potential.
The people are friendly and quite open in conversation. They have this unique Yoruba accent when they speak that is only attributed to people that come from Oke Ogun.
The journey was a smooth ride, except for the numerous big speed bumps on the busy parts of the road. They were big enough to jolt you out of sleep.
I had a good trip all in all!
Pictures(all captured by me): Samsung Note 10 plus
References:
- Google Maps
- Channels TV
https://m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DBbflovJYcs0&ved=2ahUKEwicquuP9cn0AhUjMewKHQ7JCdkQo7QBegQIChAF&usg=AOvVaw2U6UaxmY2L8OghBSzOT3QA*