Gash-Setit is a designated national
wildlife reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
and historical area of western
Eritrea
Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...
where its considered to be the northern most point of Africa for elephant habitat. It is located in much of
Omhajer District and
Haykota District between south west of
Haykota
Haykota ( ar, هاكوتا) is a small town in the western Gash-Barka region of Eritrea.
Overview
The town is situated near the location of a monument erected to memorialize Hamid Idris Awate, the man who started the Eritrean War of Independence. ...
and the market town of
Tesseney in the
Gash-Barka
Gash-Barka ( ti, ጋሽ-ባርካ, it, Regione di Gasc-Barca) is an Regions of Eritrea, administrative region of Eritrea. It is situated in the south-west of the country, bordering the Anseba region to the north, and the Maekel Region, Maekel (C ...
region. The name is derived from the two rivers, the
Gash and the
Setit (Tekezé) River. It is the historical area of the
Kunama people
The Kunama are an ethnic group native to Eritrea. They are one of the smallest ethnic communities in Eritrea, constituting only 2% of the population. Most of the estimated 260,000 Kunama live in the remote and isolated area between the Gash and ...
and a very fertile region extending to the Sudan border.
Gash-Setit is found in the
Gash-Barka Zone of Eritrea since 1991.
Economy
It is often referred to as "the breadbasket of Eritrea" because the area is agriculturally rich and more fertile than most of Eritrea. Crops such as
sorghum
''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species is grown for grain, while many othe ...
,
millet
Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
,
legumes
A legume () is a plant in the family Fabaceae (or Leguminosae), or the fruit or seed of such a plant. When used as a dry grain, the seed is also called a pulse. Legumes are grown agriculturally, primarily for human consumption, for livestock fo ...
,
cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...
and
sesame
Sesame ( or ; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a flowering plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cu ...
are produced in the area. The high agricultural potential of the area was recognized by the Italians during the occupation and in 1928 they established the
Alighidir cotton plantation in the area which provided cotton for the Barattolo Textile Factory in
Asmara
Asmara ( ), or Asmera, is the capital and most populous city of Eritrea, in the country's Central Region. It sits at an elevation of , making it the sixth highest capital in the world by altitude and the second highest capital in Africa. The ...
.
Citrus
''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as Orange (fruit), oranges, Lemon, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and lim ...
fruits and
bananas
A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...
were also produced in the Gash-Setit but many of the plantations were destroyed during the
Eritrean War of Independence
The Eritrean War of Independence was a war for independence which Eritrean independence fighters waged against successive Ethiopian governments from 1 September 1961 to 24 May 1991.
Eritrea was an Italian colony from the 1880s until the d ...
in the 1960s or by the Ethiopian army during the 2000 conflict.
The
Tigre and
Hedareb populations which introduced
pastoral farming
Pastoral farming (also known in some regions as ranching, livestock farming or grazing) is aimed at producing livestock, rather than growing crops. Examples include dairy farming, raising beef cattle, and raising sheep for wool. In contrast, ar ...
and grazing in the area has come into conflict with the
Kunama peoples with the result that economic production in the area is now concentrated on arable farming .
Politics
Formerly part of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
, in 1992 according to the
United Nations Observer Mission to Verify the Referendum in Eritrea a total of 73,236 people out of 73,506 surveyed in the area had voted for Eritrea to become an independent nation
The park was under the administration of
Germano Nati.
Geography
Settlements within the area with names giving testimony to the former Italian occupation of the area include
Arcugi
Arcugi ( ar, أركوجي) is a village in western Eritrea. It is located in Omhajer District in the Gash-Barka region. It lies inside the Gash-Setit wildlife reserve 6 kilometres south-west of Giamal Biscia.
As the name may suggest, the villa ...
,
Giamal Biscia which lie inside the park and the villages of
Geniti and
Ameli lay outside the area to the south. The village of
Adendema lies at the north-east corner of the Gash-Setit.
Further reading
*Bariagaber, Assefaw, 2006,
Conflict And the Refugee Experience: Flight, Exile, And Repatriation in the Horn of Africa'' Ashgate Publishing Ltd.
References
{{reflist
External links
Potential conflicts in the Gash-Setit by Alexander Naty(Google entry no.7)
Wildlife reserves of Eritrea
Former provinces of Eritrea