The Harar Wildlife Sanctuary (also known as the Babille Elephant Sanctuary) is a protected area in Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...

. It is located in the Misraq (East) Hararghe Zone

Misraq Hararghe Zone

Misraq Hararghe is one of the 17 Zones of the Ethiopian Region of Oromia. Misraq Hararge takes its name from the former province of Hararghe. Misraq Hararge is bordered on the southwest by the Shebelle River which separates it from Bale, on the west by Mirab Hararghe, on the north by Dire Dawa and...

 of the Oromia Region

Oromia Region

Oromia is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia...

, south of Babille

Babille

Babille is a town in eastern Ethiopia. Named after one of the 12 major clans of the Oromo people , it is located in the Misraq Hararghe Zone of the Oromia Region, 30 kilometers east of Harar...

, with a central latitude and longitude of .

Encompassing 6,982 square kilometres, the Sanctuary embraces the valleys of the Erer

Erer River

The Erer is a perennial river of eastern Ethiopia. It rises near the city of Harar, and flows in a primarily southern direction to its confluence with the Shabelle at .- See also :* Rivers of Ethiopia...

, Daketa and Fafen

Fafen River

Fafen River is a river of eastern Ethiopia. Rising to the east of Harar, this river cuts through a series of wide, flat shelves of sedimentary rocks made of sandstone, limestone, and gypsum as it descends in a south-eastern direction towards the Shebelle River. The Fafen only joins the Shebelle...

 as well as the Gobele and Borale rivers; all are tributaries of the Shabelle River. Elevations range from 1000 to 1750 metres above sea level, with the lowest elevations at the southern part of the protected area.

The Sanctuary was created to for the conservation of the native elephant

Elephant

Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...

 sub-species (Loxodonta africana oleansie), and is also home for the black-maned lion. Conditions at this sanctuary are primitive, and it is not equipped for tourists

Tourism in Ethiopia

Tourism in Ethiopia accounted for 5.5% of the country's gross domestic product in 2006, having barely increased 2% over the previous year. The government is proving its commitment and willingness to develop tourism through a number of initiatives...

, although the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Ethiopia)

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is the Ethiopian government ministry which oversees the agricultural and rural development policies of Ethiopia on a Federal level...

has announced plans to remedy this shortcoming.