Abia State is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, it is bordered to the northwest by Anambra State and northeast by the states of Enugu, and Ebonyi, Imo State to the west, Cross River State to the east, Akwa Ibom State to the southeast, and Rivers State to the south. Abia is the only Southeastern state that has boundaries with the other four Southeastern states in Nigeria. It takes its name from the acronym for four of the state's most populated regions: Aba, Bende, Isuikwuato, and Afikpo. The state capital is Umuahia while the largest city and commercial centre is Aba.

The Imo River (Igbo:Imo) is located in southeastern Nigeria and flows 240 kilometres (150 mi) into the Atlantic Ocean. In Akwa Ibom State, the river is known as Imoh River, that is, Inyang Imoh, which translates to River of Wealth. Its estuary is around 40 kilometres (25 mi) wide, and the river has an annual discharge of 4 cubic kilometres (1.0 cu mi) with 26,000 hectares of wetland. The Imo's tributary rivers are the Otamiri and Oramirukwa. The Imo was cleared under the British colonial administration of Nigeria in 1907–1908 and 1911; first to Aba and then to Udo near Umuahia.