Malka Balo
Encyclopedia
Malka Balo is one of the 180 woreda
s in the Oromia Region
of Ethiopia
. Part of the Misraq (East) Hararghe Zone
, Malka Balo is bordered on the west by the Mirab (West) Hararghe Zone
, on the north by Deder
, on the northeast by Bedeno
, and on the southeast by Gola Odana Meyumuluke
; part of the boundary with the Mirab Hararghe Zone is defined by the Galetti River
. The administrative center for this woreda is Jaja; other towns include Harawacha and Harewa
.
, and the remaining 64.2% is considered degraded, built-up or otherwise unusable. Khat
, fruits and vegetables are important cash crops. Coffee
is also an important cash crop; over 50 square kilometers are planted with it.
Industry in the woreda includes 12 grain mills employing 45 people, as well as 210 registered businesses including wholesalers, retailers and service providers. Copper
and marble
deposits are known, but have not been extracted. There were 23 Farmers Associations with 25,579 members and 4 Farmers Service Cooperatives with 3210 members. Malka Balo has 6 kilometers of gravel and 85 kilometers of dry-weather road, for an average road density of 61.9 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers. About 19.4% of the urban, 9.2% of the rural and 9.7% of the total population has access to drinking water
.
in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 171,483, of whom 83,930 are men and 87,553 are women; 10,320 or 6.02% of its population are urban dwellers, which is about the same as the Zone average of 6.9%. With an estimated area of 1,469.53 square kilometers, Malka Balo has an estimated population density of 116.7 people per square kilometer, which is greater than the Zone average of 102.6.
The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 123,082, of whom 63,108 were men and 59,974 women; 5,763 or 4.68% of its population were urban dwellers at the time. (This total also includes an estimate for the inhabitants of one rural kebele
, which was not counted; it was estimated to have 13,111 inhabitants, of whom 6,594 were men and 6,517 women.) The two largest ethnic groups reported in Malko Balo were the Oromo
(93.65%), and the Amhara
(6.12%); all other ethnic groups made up 0.23% of the population. Oromiffa
was spoken as a first language by 94.95%, and 4.92% spoke Amharic
; the remaining 0.13% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were Muslim
, with 93.34% of the population having reported they practiced that belief, while 6.52% of the population said they professed Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.
Woreda
Woreda is an administrative division of Ethiopia , equivalent to a district . Woredas are composed of a number of Kebele, or neighborhood associations, which are the smallest unit of local government in Ethiopia...
s in the Oromia Region
Oromia Region
Oromia is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia...
of 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...
. Part of 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...
, Malka Balo is bordered on the west by the Mirab (West) Hararghe Zone
Mirab Hararghe Zone
Mirab Hararghe is one of the 17 Zones in the Ethiopian Region of Oromia. Mirab Hararghe takes its name from the former province of Hararghe. Mirab Harerge is bordered on the south by the Shebelle River which separates it from Bale, on the southwest by Arsi, on the northwest by the Afar Region, on...
, on the north by Deder
Deder (woreda)
Deder is one of the 180 woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the administrative center, Deder. Part of the Misraq Hararghe Zone, Deder is bordered on the south by Malka Balo, on the west by the Mirab Hararghe Zone, on the north by Goro Gutu, on the east by Meta, and on the...
, on the northeast by Bedeno
Bedeno (woreda)
Bedeno is one of the 180 woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the administrative center of the woreda, Bedeno. Part of the Misraq Hararghe Zone, Bedeno is bordered on the south by Gola Odana Meyumuluke, on the southwest by Malka Balo, on the west by Deder, on the northwest...
, and on the southeast by Gola Odana Meyumuluke
Gola Odana Meyumuluke
Gola Odana Meyumuluke is one of the 180 woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Misraq Hararghe Zone, Gola Odana Meyumuluke is bordered on the south by the Shebelle River which separates it from the Bale Zone, on the southwest by the Galetti River which separates it from the Mirab ...
; part of the boundary with the Mirab Hararghe Zone is defined by the Galetti River
Galetti River
Galetti River is a river in eastern Ethiopia. A tributary of the Shebelle River, it rises in the Chercher mountains....
. The administrative center for this woreda is Jaja; other towns include Harawacha and Harewa
Harewa, Ethiopia
Harewa is a town in eastern Ethiopia. Located in the Shinile Zone of the Somali Region, this settlement has a latitude and longitude of . This town served by a station on the Addis Ababa - Djibouti Railway.- Demographics :...
.
Overview
The altitude of this woreda ranges from 960 to 2930 meters above sea level; Adem Gedi Burqa is the highest point. Perennial rivers include the Jerjertu, Jaja, Dugo and Ramis. A survey of the land in this woreda shows that 17.3% is arable or cultivable, 5.6% pasture, 12.9% forestForestry in Ethiopia
In the late nineteenth century, about 30% of Ethiopia was covered with forest. The clearing of land for agricultural use and the cutting of trees for fuel gradually changed the scene, and today forest areas have dwindled to less than 4% of Ethiopia's total land. The northern parts of the highlands...
, and the remaining 64.2% is considered degraded, built-up or otherwise unusable. Khat
Khat
Khat, qat, gat or Waquish Spoken from true Yemeni, is a flowering plant native to tropical East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula....
, fruits and vegetables are important cash crops. Coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
is also an important cash crop; over 50 square kilometers are planted with it.
Industry in the woreda includes 12 grain mills employing 45 people, as well as 210 registered businesses including wholesalers, retailers and service providers. Copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
and marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
deposits are known, but have not been extracted. There were 23 Farmers Associations with 25,579 members and 4 Farmers Service Cooperatives with 3210 members. Malka Balo has 6 kilometers of gravel and 85 kilometers of dry-weather road, for an average road density of 61.9 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers. About 19.4% of the urban, 9.2% of the rural and 9.7% of the total population has access to drinking water
Water supply and sanitation in Ethiopia
Access to water supply and sanitation in Ethiopia is amongst the lowest in Sub-Saharan Africa and the entire world. While access has increased substantially with funding from external aid, much still remains to be done to achieve the Millennium Development Goal of halving the share of people...
.
Demographics
Based on figures published by the Central Statistical AgencyCentral Statistical Agency (Ethiopia)
The Central Statistical Agency is an agency of the government of Ethiopia designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that country used to monitor economic and social growth, as well as to act as an official training center in that field. It is part of the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and...
in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 171,483, of whom 83,930 are men and 87,553 are women; 10,320 or 6.02% of its population are urban dwellers, which is about the same as the Zone average of 6.9%. With an estimated area of 1,469.53 square kilometers, Malka Balo has an estimated population density of 116.7 people per square kilometer, which is greater than the Zone average of 102.6.
The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 123,082, of whom 63,108 were men and 59,974 women; 5,763 or 4.68% of its population were urban dwellers at the time. (This total also includes an estimate for the inhabitants of one rural kebele
Kebele
A kebele is the smallest administrative unit of Ethiopia similar to ward, a neighbourhood or a localized and delimited group of people...
, which was not counted; it was estimated to have 13,111 inhabitants, of whom 6,594 were men and 6,517 women.) The two largest ethnic groups reported in Malko Balo were the Oromo
Oromo people
The Oromo are an ethnic group found in Ethiopia, northern Kenya, .and parts of Somalia. With 30 million members, they constitute the single largest ethnic group in Ethiopia and approximately 34.49% of the population according to the 2007 census...
(93.65%), and the Amhara
Amhara people
Amhara are a highland people inhabiting the Northwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Numbering about 19.8 million people, they comprise 26% of the country's population, according to the 2007 national census...
(6.12%); all other ethnic groups made up 0.23% of the population. Oromiffa
Oromo language
Oromo, also known as Afaan Oromo, Oromiffa, Afan Boran, Afan Orma, and sometimes in other languages by variant spellings of these names , is an Afro-Asiatic language, and the most widely spoken of the Cushitic family. Forms of Oromo are spoken as a first language by more than 25 million Oromo and...
was spoken as a first language by 94.95%, and 4.92% spoke Amharic
Amharic language
Amharic is a Semitic language spoken in Ethiopia. It is the second most-spoken Semitic language in the world, after Arabic, and the official working language of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Thus, it has official status and is used nationwide. Amharic is also the official or working...
; the remaining 0.13% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were Muslim
Islam in Ethiopia
According to the latest 2007 national census, Islam is the second most widely practised religion in Ethiopia after Christianity, with over 25 million of Ethiopians adhering to Islam according to the 2007 national census, having arrived in Ethiopia in 615...
, with 93.34% of the population having reported they practiced that belief, while 6.52% of the population said they professed Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.