Abuja the city of Abuja had a population of 776,298, making it one of the ten most populous cities in Nigeria. According to the United Nations, Abuja grew by 139.7% between 2000 and 2010, making it the fastest growing city in the world. , the city is experiencing an annual growth of at least 35%, retaining its position as the fastest-growing city on the African continent and one of the fastest-growing in the world. As at 2016, the metropolitan area of Abuja is estimated at six million persons, placing it behind only Lagos, as the most populous metro area in Nigeria.
Abuja for Abuja came because of Lagos' population boom that made that city overcrowded and conditions squalid. As Lagos was already undergoing rapid economic development, the Nigerian regime felt the need to expand the economy towards the inner part of the country, and hence decided to move its capital to Abuja. The logic used was similar to the way Brazil planned its capital, Brasília. The decision to move to Abuja was made by General Murtala Mohammed in 1976. Construction started in the late 1970s but, due to economic and political instability, the initial stages of the city were not complete until