Kedida Gamela is a
woreda
Districts of Ethiopia, also called woredas ( am, ወረዳ; ''woreda''), are the third level of the administrative divisions of Ethiopia – after ''zones'' and the '' regional states''.
These districts are further subdivided into a number of ...
in the
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 ...
. Part of the
Kembata Tembaro Zone
Kembata Tembaro is a zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. It was formerly known as ''Kembata, Alaba and Tembaro'', until Alaba became a special woreda in 2002. This zone is named after the Kambaata peopl ...
(KT), Kedida Gamela is bordered on the east and south by an
exclave
An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
of the
Hadiya Zone
Hadiya (also transliterated Hadiyya) is a zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. This zone is named after the Hadiya of the Hadiya Kingdom, whose homeland covers part of the administrative division. Hadiya ...
, on the west by
Kacha Bira
Kacha Bira is a woreda in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Kembata Tembaro Zone, Kacha Bira is bordered on the south by an exclave of the Hadiya Zone, on the southwest by the Wolayita Zone, on the we ...
, on the northwest by
Angacha, on the north by
Damboya, and on the northeast by the
Bilate River
The Bilate is a river of south-central Ethiopia. It rises on the southwestern slopes of Mount Gurage near , flowing south along the western side of the Great Rift Valley, to empty into Lake Abaya at . It is the longest river flowing into Lake Ab ...
which separates it from
Alaba. The northern part of Kedida Gamela was separated to create Damboya woreda.
Overview
The altitude of this woreda ranges from 1700 to 3028 meters above sea level. Its area is divided into 7% highland (''Dega'') and 93% ''Weyna Dega'' (sub-tropical climate).
["Ethiopian Village Studies: Aze Debo'a, Kembata"]
, Center for the Study of African Economies (accessed 8 September 2009) Kedida Gamela has 45 kilometers of all-weather roads and 17 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 199 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers.
Into the early 1990s inhabitants of this woreda would temporarily migrate to places like
Harar
Harar ( amh, ሐረር; Harari: ሀረር; om, Adare Biyyo; so, Herer; ar, هرر) known historically by the indigenous as Gey (Harari: ጌይ ''Gēy'', ) is a walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is also known in Arabic as the City of Saint ...
,
Wonji,
Welkite
Welkite (also transliterated Wolkite) () is a town and separate woreda in south-western Ethiopia. The administrative center of the Gurage Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region (SNNPR), this town has a latitude and longi ...
,
Negele Arsi
Negele Arsi or Arsi Negele, is a town in southeastern Ethiopia. Located in the West Arsi Zone of the Oromia Region on the paved highway north of Shashamane, this town has a longitude and latitude of and an elevation of 2,043 meters above sea le ...
,
Shashamene
Shashamane ( om, Shashamannee, am, ሻሸመኔ) is a town in southern Ethiopia. Located in the Oromia Region with a 2007 Census population of 100,454, but with an estimated 208,368 inhabitants in mid 2022; the town is known for its Rastafarian ...
, and
Wondo Genet
Wondo Genet (also transliterated Wendo Genet) is a resort town in Ethiopia located southeast of Shashemene in the Sidama Region with an elevation of 1723 meters.
Wondo Genet is connected to Shashamene by way of Wendo Wosha, by newly improved ...
to look for work. Migrants went to
Metahara and the
Wonji Sugar Plantation
Wenji Gefersa ( om, Wancii Gafarsaa) a town in central Ethiopia. Located in the East Shewa Zone of the Oromia, it has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 1588 meters above sea level.
Overview
Local landmarks include the Wenji Ye'i ...
to work as day laborers cutting sugarcane. They went to the Siraro State Farm in the
Arsi Province
Arsi Province (Amharic: አርሲ) was a Provinces of Ethiopia, province of Ethiopian Empire with its capital at Asella. Historically a part of the Emirate of Harar until its invasion by Menelik and subsequent incorporation into modern Ethiopia. ...
and Kedi Shamena State Farm as day laborers. In September and April they would migrate to Welkite to plant and harvest maize for farmers. They migrated to
Alaba Kulito in April, March, December, January and July to harvest or plant peppers for farmers. With the evolution of Regions during the
Transitional Government of Ethiopia
The Transitional Government of Ethiopia (TGE) was an era established immediately after the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) seized power from the Marxist-Leninist People's Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (PDRE) in 1991. D ...
, migrating for work was discouraged.
[
]
Demographics
Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the CSA, this woreda has a total population of 89,391, of whom 44,589 are men and 44,802 women; 4,660 or 5.21% of its population are urban dwellers. The majority of the inhabitants were Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, with 76.48% of the population reporting that belief, 11.18% were Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, 9.91% were Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, and 1.7% practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chris ...
.
The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 140,880 of whom 70,783 were men and 93,194 were women; 16,723 or 11.87% of its population were urban dwellers. The three largest ethnic groups reported in Kedida Gamela were the Kambaata (97.32%), the Hadiya (0.74%) and the Amhara (0.71%); all other ethnic groups made up 1.23% of the population. Kambaata is spoken as a first language by 96.98%, 1.43% speak Amharic
Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...
, and 0.54% speak Hadiya; the remaining 1.05% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, with 57.24% of the population reporting that belief, while 24.9% were Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, 8.8% practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity
The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተ ክርስቲያን, ''Yäityop'ya ortodoks täwahedo bétäkrestyan'') is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Churches. One of the few Chris ...
, and 8.03% were Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
.''1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region'', Vol. 1, part 1
, Tables 2.1, 2.12, 2.15, 2.19 (accessed 30 December 2008)
Notes
{{Districts of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region
Districts of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region