Debub Omo Zone (South Omo)
South Omo Zone (or Debub Omo Zone) is a zone in the Ethiopian Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region (SNNPR). Debub Omo is bordered on the south by Kenya, on the southwest by the South Sudan, on the west by Bench Maji, on the northwest by Keffa, on the north by Konta, Gamo Gofa and Basketo, on the northeast by Dirashe and Konso, and on the east by the Oromia Region. The administrative center of Debub Omo is Jinka.
This zone is named for the Omo River, a river that flows south into Lake Turkana on the western side. Mago National Park and Tama Wildlife Reserve are located at the eastern bank of Omo river. There is Lake Chew Bahir surrounded by Stephanie Wildlife Sanctuary located at the eastern border of this zone. Notable high points include Mount Smith (2560 meters) and Mount Mago (2538 meters). West of the Omo is the most sparsely populated part of Ethiopia, inhabited by nomadic and semi-nomadic ethnic groups. A 1996 report described the infrastructure of the Zone as "weak and for the most part non-existent; this is a disadvantage inherited from historical neglect of a typical marginal region." It also observed that the Debub Omo Zone "one of Ethiopian's socially most diverse zones. It contains a minimum of 12 different ethnic groups, and possibly as many as 21. Social diversity therefore compounds the existing problems of isolation, acute shortage of basic infrastructure as well as scarcity of professional and technical man-power."
Debub Omo has 462 kilometers of all-weather roads and 412 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 37 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers. According to the Central Statistical Agency (CSA) 1,364 tons of coffee were produced in Debub Omo in the year ending in 2005, representing 1.36% of the SNNPR's output and 0.6% of Ethiopia's total output.
This zone is named for the Omo River, a river that flows south into Lake Turkana on the western side. Mago National Park and Tama Wildlife Reserve are located at the eastern bank of Omo river. There is Lake Chew Bahir surrounded by Stephanie Wildlife Sanctuary located at the eastern border of this zone. Notable high points include Mount Smith (2560 meters) and Mount Mago (2538 meters). West of the Omo is the most sparsely populated part of Ethiopia, inhabited by nomadic and semi-nomadic ethnic groups. A 1996 report described the infrastructure of the Zone as "weak and for the most part non-existent; this is a disadvantage inherited from historical neglect of a typical marginal region." It also observed that the Debub Omo Zone "one of Ethiopian's socially most diverse zones. It contains a minimum of 12 different ethnic groups, and possibly as many as 21. Social diversity therefore compounds the existing problems of isolation, acute shortage of basic infrastructure as well as scarcity of professional and technical man-power."
Debub Omo has 462 kilometers of all-weather roads and 412 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 37 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers. According to the Central Statistical Agency (CSA) 1,364 tons of coffee were produced in Debub Omo in the year ending in 2005, representing 1.36% of the SNNPR's output and 0.6% of Ethiopia's total output.
Map - Debub Omo Zone (South Omo)
Map
Country - Ethiopia
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| Flag of Ethiopia | |
Anatomically modern humans emerged from modern-day Ethiopia and set out to the Near East and elsewhere in the Middle Paleolithic period. Southwestern Ethiopia has been proposed as a possible homeland of the Afroasiatic language family. In 980 BCE, the Kingdom of D'mt extended its realm over Eritrea and the northern region of Ethiopia, while the Kingdom of Aksum maintained a unified civilization in the region for 900 years. Christianity was embraced by the kingdom in 330, and Islam arrived by the first Hijra in 615. After the collapse of Aksum in 960, a variety of kingdoms, largely tribal confederations, existed in the land of Ethiopia. The Zagwe dynasty ruled the north-central parts until being overthrown by Yekuno Amlak in 1270, inaugurating the Ethiopian Empire and the Solomonic dynasty, claimed descent from the biblical Solomon and Queen of Sheba under their son Menelik I. By the 14th century, the empire grew in prestige through territorial expansion and fighting against adjacent territories; most notably, the Ethiopian–Adal War (1529–1543) contributed to fragmentation of the empire, which ultimately fell under a decentralization known as Zemene Mesafint in the mid-18th century. Emperor Tewodros II ended Zemene Mesafint at the beginning of his reign in 1855, marking the reunification and modernization of Ethiopia.
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| ETB | Ethiopian birr | Br | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| AM | Amharic language |
| EN | English language |
| OM | Oromo language |
| SO | Somali language |
| TI | Tigrinya language |