Funakaye
{{more citations needed|date=September 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Use Nigerian English|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name = Funakaye
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| settlement_type = LGA
| motto = Farm, Rear and Read
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| pushpin_map = Nigeria
| pushpin_label_position =
| pushpin_mapsize = 250
| pushpin_map_caption = Location in Nigeria
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = {{flag|Nigeria}}
| subdivision_type1 = State
| subdivision_name1 = Gombe State
| seat_type = Headquarters
| seat = Bajoga
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| unit_pref = Metric
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| area_total_km2 = 1415
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| population_as_of = 2006 census
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| population_total = 236,087
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| timezone = WAT
| utc_offset = +1
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| coordinates = {{coord|10|51|N|11|26|E|type:adm2nd_region:NG|display=inline,title}}
|module={{Infobox mapframe|wikidata=yes|zoom=8|marker=village|coord={{WikidataCoord|display=i}}}}
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| postal_code_type = 3-digit postal code prefix
| postal_code = 762
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| iso_code = NG.GO.FU
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| leader_title = Local Government Chairman
| leader_name = Alhaji Shuaibu Abdulrahman Adam
}}
Funakaye is a Local Government Area of Gombe State, Nigeria. Its headquarters is in the town of Bajoga.{{Cite web |title=Funakaye LGA |url=http://localgovernment.ng/gombe-state/funakaye-lga/ |access-date=2022-12-23 |website=Journal Of Local Governments Of Nigeria |language=en-US}} Its current chairman is Alhaji Ibrahim Cheldu of the All Progressives Congress. Funakaye is bounded in the east by the Gongola River and Lake Dadin Kowa, beyond which lie Yobe State and Borno State.
It has an araa of 1,415 km{{sup|2}} and a population of 236,087 at the 2006 census. The postal code of the area is 762.{{cite web|title=Post Offices- with map of LGA |publisher=NIPOST |url=http://www.nipost.gov.ng/PostCode.aspx |access-date=2009-10-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091007011423/http://www.nipost.gov.ng/PostCode.aspx |archive-date=2009-10-07 }} The town got its name from the two Fulani words "funa" meaning "East" and "kaye" meaning "woodlands" which means "East woodlands".{{Cite web |last=Rasak |first=Adekunle |date=2020-12-11 |title=Gombe awards N2.8bn contract for roads in Nafada, Funakaye, three-span bridge in Dukku LGAs |url=https://tribuneonlineng.com/gombe-awards-n2-8bn-contract-for-roads-in-nafada-funakaye-three-span-bridge-in-dukku-lgas/ |access-date=2023-05-25 |website=Tribune Online |language=en-GB}}
Demography
Funakaye is inhabited dominantly by the Fulani people. Fulfulde is the most spoken language in the area. Hausa, Kanuri and Bolewa languages are also known and spoken by the inhabitants.{{Cite web |last=Rasak |first=Adekunle |date=2020-12-11 |title=Gombe awards N2.8bn contract for roads in Nafada, Funakaye, three-span bridge in Dukku LGAs |url=https://tribuneonlineng.com/gombe-awards-n2-8bn-contract-for-roads-in-nafada-funakaye-three-span-bridge-in-dukku-lgas/ |access-date=2023-05-25 |website=Tribune Online |language=en-GB}}
All indigenous people of Funakaye are Muslims . However, due to the abundant mineral resources in the area especially Limestone,{{Cite web |last=Tersoo |first=Andrella |date=2019-01-23 |title=Top places where limestone is found in Nigeria |url=https://www.legit.ng/1216928-where-limestone-nigeria.html |access-date=2022-08-15 |website=Legit.ng - Nigeria news. |language=en}} there has been an influx of Christians from other part of Nigeria who had built churches in the area and are living peacefully with their hosts.
Religion
Funakaye is a Local Government Area with majority of its people being Muslims and Christians are a minority.
= Mineral resources and development =
Due to the local production of crops such sorghum, maize, beans, and millet, farming is a significant economic activity for the residents of Funakaye LGA.{{Cite web |title=Funakaye Local Government Area |url=https://www.manpower.com.ng/places/lga/323/funakaye |access-date=2023-08-15 |website=www.manpower.com.ng}}
Funakaye is blessed with minerals like bentonite and limestone, coal, gypsum, gold, gemstone, uranium, etc.{{Cite web |last=Atulegwu |first=David |date=2020-08-12 |title=List of Natural Mineral Resources Found in Gombe State |url=https://nigerianinfopedia.com.ng/natural-resources-found-in-gombe-state/ |access-date=2022-08-15 |website=Nigerian Infopedia |language=en-US}} However, Funakaye is the least developed LGA of the State. The people are living in abject poverty and the illiteracy rate is quite beyond that of all the other Local Government Areas in the state.{{Cite web |last=Rasak |first=Adekunle |date=2020-12-11 |title=Gombe awards N2.8bn contract for roads in Nafada, Funakaye, three-span bridge in Dukku LGAs |url=https://tribuneonlineng.com/gombe-awards-n2-8bn-contract-for-roads-in-nafada-funakaye-three-span-bridge-in-dukku-lgas/ |access-date=2023-05-25 |website=Tribune Online |language=en-GB}}
The French company Lafarge (company) has been operating in the area since the 1990s, mining limestone, coal, and other mineral resources amidst, though under allegations of not fulfilling its corporate social responsibility of bringing social amenities to the poor, uneducated locals whose environment has been polluted. Other allegations include the preference of employing non-indigenes over indigenes as against the state laws. The company had for so many times promised to alleviate poverty in the area but to no avail. {{Cite web |last=staff |first=Global Cement |title=Ashaka Cement to invest in poverty alleviation in northern Nigeria |url=https://www.globalcement.com/news/item/3888-ashaka-cement-to-invest-in-poverty-alleviation-in-northern-nigeria |access-date=2022-08-15 |website=www.globalcement.com}}
Climate
Emir
The Emir of Funakaye, Alhaji Mu’azu Muhammad Kwairanga III, died at the age of 45 on Saturday, 27 August.{{Cite web |last=Online |first=Tribune |date=2022-08-28 |title=Emir of Funakaye, Kwairanga, dies at 45 |url=https://tribuneonlineng.com/emir-of-funakaye-kwairanga-dies-at-45/ |access-date=2022-09-10 |website=Tribune Online |language=en-GB}}
Late Alhaji Mu’azu Muhammad Kwairanga III was succeeded by Alhaji Yakubu Muhammad Kwairanga IV, appointed by the Executive Governor of Gombe State, Alhaji Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya on 21 November 2022.{{Cite web |last=Rasak |first=Adekunle |date=2020-12-11 |title=Gombe awards N2.8bn contract for roads in Nafada, Funakaye, three-span bridge in Dukku LGAs |url=https://tribuneonlineng.com/gombe-awards-n2-8bn-contract-for-roads-in-nafada-funakaye-three-span-bridge-in-dukku-lgas/ |access-date=2023-05-25 |website=Tribune Online |language=en-GB}}
Climate
In Bajoga, a town in Funakaye, the wet season is hot, oppressive, and mostly cloudy and the dry season is sweltering and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 60 °F to 104 °F and is rarely below 55 °F or above 108 °F.