Port Harcourt
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Port Harcourt is a city located in the Niger Delta in Nigeria, with an area of 924,000 km². It is the administrative center of the Rivers state. Port Harcourt was founded by the British in 1912 on land originally inhabited by the Ijaw people and named for Lewis, Viscount Harcourt, secretary of state for the colonies (1910–15).
The initial purpose of the port was to export coal that arrived in large quantities from the mining town of Enugu to the north via the Bonny river along which the port sits. It has a population of 1,133,400 (as of 2004). Business related to the petroleum industry is conducted here.
The current governor is Dr. Peter Odili of the Peoples Democratic Party, who won the election for a second term in 2003 Port Harcourt International Airport lies approximately 30 km north of the city. It is currently directly served from Paris (Air France) and London (Virgin Airways).