Sheko (woreda)
Encyclopedia
Sheko is one of the 77 woreda
s in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia
. It is named for the Sheko people, whose homeland lies in the eastern part of the woreda; a different ethnic group, the Me'en
, dominate the southeastern part. Part of the Bench Maji Zone
, Sheko is bordered on the south by Dizi
and Surma
, on the west by Sudan
, on the north by the Gambela Region
, on the northeast by Keficho Shekicho Zone
, on the east by Bench
, and on the southeast by Meinit
; the Akobo River
defines the southern and western boundaries of this woreda. Towns in Sheko include Dima, Guraferda and Sheko.
Sheko suffers from a lack of roads and means of transport; remote locations are accessible only by air. Most of the inhabitants live a sedentary life, except in the pastoral area around Guraferda. Major cash crops in this woreda include wheat, peppers, barley
and pulses. Another source of income is honey production, which along with some cash crops find their way via traders to the administrative center of the Zone, Mizan Teferi
, and from there as far as Jimma.
Four opposition parties, the Council of Alternative Forces for Peace and Democracy in Ethiopia, the All-Amhara People's Organization
, the Southern Ethiopia Peoples' Democratic Coalition
and the Oromo National Congress reported that 1,760 people were killed and thousands more wounded in Sheko woreda in late March and early April 2002 while protesting what they believed were elections irregularities.
in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 51,455, of whom 24,764 are men and 26,691 women; 4,112 or 7.99% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 9.1%. With an estimated area of 6,321.72 square kilometers, Sheko has an estimated population density of 8.1 people per square kilometer, which is less than the Zone average of 20.
In the 1994 national census Sheko had a population of 35,878, of whom 18,594 were men and 17,284 women; 2,271 or 6.33% of its population were urban dwellers. (This total also includes an estimate for the inhabitants of 2 rural kebele
s, which were not counted; they were estimated to have 256 inhabitants, of whom 143 were men and 113 women.) The five largest ethnic groups reported in this woreda were the Sheko people (33.64%), the Amhara
(16.09%), the Kafficho (15.26%), the Bench (12.7%), and the Me'en (5.76%); all other ethnic groups made up 16.55% of the population. Sheko
was spoken as a first language by 33.88% of the inhabitants, 23.48% spoke Amharic
, 12.56% spoke Kafa
, 12.02% spoke Bench
, and 5.5% spoke Me'en; the remaining 13.56% spoke all other primary languages reported.
The Sheko largely speak a language within the Omotic family
, and have had patrilineally inherited chief positions known as kaibab. Some individuals practice a degree of agriculture
, notably transplanting yams
in more remote areas, while adopting sorghum
and other crops in more centrally located regions. Concerning education
, 15.88% of the population were considered literate; 9.91% of children aged 7–12 were in primary school; 2.36% of the children aged 13–14 were in junior secondary school, and 0.73% of the inhabitants aged 15–18 were in senior secondary school. Concerning sanitary conditions
, about 73% of the urban and 10% of the total had toilet facilities.
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 Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region 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...
. It is named for the Sheko people, whose homeland lies in the eastern part of the woreda; a different ethnic group, the Me'en
Surma people
Surma is a panethnicity residing in South Sudan and southwestern Ethiopia. It includes the Nilo-Saharan-speaking Suri, Mursi and Me'en.-Overview:...
, dominate the southeastern part. Part of the Bench Maji Zone
Bench Maji Zone
Bench Maji is one of the 13 Zones of the Ethiopian Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region . Bench Maji is bordered on the south by the Ilemi Triangle, on the west by Sudan, on the northwest by the Gambela Region, on the north by Keficho Shekicho and on the east by Debub Omo...
, Sheko is bordered on the south by Dizi
Dizi (woreda)
Dizi is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the Dizi people, whose homeland lies in the northern part of this district; a different ethnic group, the Surma, inhabit the southern part...
and Surma
Surma (woreda)
Surma is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. It is named for the Surma people, whose homeland lies in the southern part of the woreda. Part of the Bench Maji Zone, Surma is bordered on the south and west by Sudan, on the north by the Akobo...
, on the west by Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, on the north by the Gambela Region
Gambela Region
Gambela is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia. Previously known as "Region 12", its capital is Gambela. Lying between the Baro and Akobo Rivers, the western part of Gambela includes the Baro salient....
, on the northeast by Keficho Shekicho Zone
Keficho Shekicho Zone
Keficho Shekicho is a Zone in the Ethiopian Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region . While in their latest population estimates the Central Statistical Agency includes it as a single Zone, the list of second administrative level bodies maintained by the United Nations Geographic...
, on the east by Bench
Bench (woreda)
Bench is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. It is named for the Bench people, whose homeland lies in the northern part of the woreda. Part of the Bench Maji Zone, Bench is bordered on the south and east by Meinit, on the west by Sheko, and...
, and on the southeast by Meinit
Meinit
Meinit is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Bench Maji Zone, Meinit is bordered on the south by Dizi, on the west by Sheko, on the north by Bench, on the east by the Keficho Shekicho Zone, and on the southeast by the Omo River...
; the Akobo River
Akobo River
The Akobo River is a river on the border between South Sudan and Ethiopia. From its source in the Ethiopian Highlands near Mizan Teferi is flows west for to join the Pibor River...
defines the southern and western boundaries of this woreda. Towns in Sheko include Dima, Guraferda and Sheko.
Overview
The most important rivers in this woreda include the Bergi, Gacheb, Onja, Dama, Beko, and Kashu. One of the few remaining extensive natural forest areas in the country is found in Sheko, with tropical species covering lowland and low midland elevations. High points in this woreda include Mount Bokol (2160 meters) and Mount Guraferda (2494 meters).Sheko suffers from a lack of roads and means of transport; remote locations are accessible only by air. Most of the inhabitants live a sedentary life, except in the pastoral area around Guraferda. Major cash crops in this woreda include wheat, peppers, barley
Barley
Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...
and pulses. Another source of income is honey production, which along with some cash crops find their way via traders to the administrative center of the Zone, Mizan Teferi
Mizan Teferi
Mizan Tefere is a town in southern Ethiopia. The largest town, and the administrative center, of the Bench Maji Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region , and located about 160 kilometers southwest of Jimma, Mizan Tefere has a latitude and longitude of and an elevation of...
, and from there as far as Jimma.
Four opposition parties, the Council of Alternative Forces for Peace and Democracy in Ethiopia, the All-Amhara People's Organization
All-Amhara People's Organization
The All-Amhara People's Organization is an ethnic based political party in Ethiopia, whose leader was the late Asrat Woldeyes.At the last legislative elections, 15 May 2005, the party was part of the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces, that won 52 out of 527 seats in the Council of People's...
, the Southern Ethiopia Peoples' Democratic Coalition
Southern Ethiopia Peoples' Democratic Coalition
The Southern Ethiopia People's Democratic Coalition is a political party in Ethiopia. At the last legislative elections held on 15 May 2005, the Coalition was part of the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces that won 52 out of 527 seats in the Council of People's Representatives .It was founded in...
and the Oromo National Congress reported that 1,760 people were killed and thousands more wounded in Sheko woreda in late March and early April 2002 while protesting what they believed were elections irregularities.
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 51,455, of whom 24,764 are men and 26,691 women; 4,112 or 7.99% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 9.1%. With an estimated area of 6,321.72 square kilometers, Sheko has an estimated population density of 8.1 people per square kilometer, which is less than the Zone average of 20.
In the 1994 national census Sheko had a population of 35,878, of whom 18,594 were men and 17,284 women; 2,271 or 6.33% of its population were urban dwellers. (This total also includes an estimate for the inhabitants of 2 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...
s, which were not counted; they were estimated to have 256 inhabitants, of whom 143 were men and 113 women.) The five largest ethnic groups reported in this woreda were the Sheko people (33.64%), 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...
(16.09%), the Kafficho (15.26%), the Bench (12.7%), and the Me'en (5.76%); all other ethnic groups made up 16.55% of the population. Sheko
Sheko language
Sheko is an Omotic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family spoken in the area between Tepi and Mizan Teferi in western Ethiopia, in the Sheko district in the Bench Maji Zone...
was spoken as a first language by 33.88% of the inhabitants, 23.48% 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...
, 12.56% spoke Kafa
Kafa language
Kaffa is an Afroasiatic language spoken in Ethiopia around Bonga in the Keficho Shekicho Zone. The language is also called Kafi nono.- Further reading :...
, 12.02% spoke Bench
Bench language
Bench is a Northern Omotic language of the "Gimojan" subgroup, spoken by about 174,000 people in the Bench Maji Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region, in southern Ethiopia, around the towns of Mizan Teferi and Shewa Gimira...
, and 5.5% spoke Me'en; the remaining 13.56% spoke all other primary languages reported.
The Sheko largely speak a language within the Omotic family
Omotic languages
The Omotic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic family spoken in southwestern Ethiopia. The Ge'ez alphabet is used to write some Omotic languages, the Roman alphabet for some others. They are fairly agglutinative, and have complex tonal systems .-Language list:The North and South Omotic...
, and have had patrilineally inherited chief positions known as kaibab. Some individuals practice a degree of agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, notably transplanting yams
Yam (vegetable)
Yam is the common name for some species in the genus Dioscorea . These are perennial herbaceous vines cultivated for the consumption of their starchy tubers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Oceania...
in more remote areas, while adopting sorghum
Sorghum
Sorghum is a genus of numerous species of grasses, one of which is raised for grain and many of which are used as fodder plants either cultivated or as part of pasture. The plants are cultivated in warmer climates worldwide. Species are native to tropical and subtropical regions of all continents...
and other crops in more centrally located regions. Concerning education
Education in Ethiopia
Education in Ethiopia has been dominated by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church for many centuries until secular education was adopted in the early 1900s. Prior to 1974, Ethiopia had an estimated illiteracy rate well above 90% and compared poorly with the rest of Africa in the provision of schools and...
, 15.88% of the population were considered literate; 9.91% of children aged 7–12 were in primary school; 2.36% of the children aged 13–14 were in junior secondary school, and 0.73% of the inhabitants aged 15–18 were in senior secondary school. Concerning sanitary conditions
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...
, about 73% of the urban and 10% of the total had toilet facilities.