Ekiti State was created on 1st October, 1996 out of the former Ondo State. It is bounded on the South by Ondo State, on the North by Kwara State, on the East by Kogi State. Ekiti State of Nigeria was created on 1st October, 1996 along side other five by the late Head of state and Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, General Sani Abacha, GCON in a nation-wide broadcast to mark the 36th Independence anniversary of Nigeria. The State, carved out of Ondo State, cover the former twelve local government areas that made up the Ekiti Zone of old Ondo State.
The State enjoys tropical climate with two distinct seasons. These are the rainy season (April–October) and the dry season (November–March). Temperature ranges between 21° and 28 °C with high humidity. The south westerly wind and the northeast trade winds blow in the rainy and dry (Harmattan) seasons respectively. Tropical forest exists in the south, while savannah occupies the northern peripheries.
The state is largely agrarian. Agriculture is the mainstay of the state economy. It employs 75% of the state working population.
The land is buoyant in agricultural resources with cocoa as its leading cash crop. It was largely known that Ekiti land constituted well over 40% of the cocoa products of the famous old Western Region. The land is also known for its forest resources, notably timber. Because of the favourable climatic conditions, the land enjoys luxuriant vegetation, thus, it has abundant resources of different species of timber. Food crops such as yam, cassava, and also grains like rice and maize are grown in large qualities. Other notable crops such as kola nut and varieties of fruits are also cultivated in commercial quantities
The State is one of the largest producers of Rice, Kolanut, oil palm and cocoa in the country. They also produce crops like cassava, yam, cocoyam, maize, cowpea, citrus, plantain and fruits like cashew, mango and orange. As the state is within the ecological belt known for abundant forest resources the state produces high quality woods which are raw material for wood based industries within and outside the state.
Industrially, the state is arid with only few companies on the ground. However, the state government has embarked on an aggressive industrialization drive through the provision of necessary infrastructure while new industrial estates are being opened under World Bank Infrastructural Development Fund to cater for investors' needs. The state is endowed with abundant mineral deposits of value like Clay, Kaolin, Columbite, Cassiterite, Foundry Sand, Bauxite, Clarcomite and Charcoalnite Granite.