Yirgachefe is one of the 77 woreda

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...

, named after its major town Yirgachefe. Part of the Gedeo Zone

Gedeo Zone

Gedeo is a Zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region of Ethiopia. This Zone is named for the Gedeo people, whose homelands lie in this zone...

, Yirgachefe is bordered on the south by Kochere

Kochere

Kochere is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Gedeo Zone, Kochere is bordered on the east, south and west by the Oromia Region, on the north by Yirgachefe, and on the northeast by Bule...

, on the west by the Oromia Zone

Oromia Zone

Oromia is one of 10 Zones in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Oromia is named for the Oromo people, who settled along the edge of the Ethiopian highlands that form this Zone. Oromia is bordered on the southwest by Semien Shewa, on the northwest by Debub Wollo, and on the east by the Afar Region...

, on the north by Wenago

Wenago (woreda)

Wenago is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Gedeo Zone, Wenago is bordered on the south by Yirgachefe, on the west by the Oromia Region, on the north by the Sidama Zone, and on the east by Bule...

, and on the east by Bule

Bule (woreda)

Bule is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia, named after its major town, Bule. Part of the Gedeo Zone, Bule is bordered on the south by Kochere, on the west by Yirgachefe, on the northwest by Wenago, and on the east by the Oromia Region.Most...

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Overview

According to a 2004 report, Yirgachefe had 19 kilometers of asphalt roads, 56 kilometers of all-weather roads and 8 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 276 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers.

Coffee

Coffee production in Ethiopia

The coffee production in Ethiopia is critical to the Ethiopian economy with about 25% of the population depending directly or indirectly on coffee for its livelihood...

 is an important cash crop; Esayas Kebede, head of coffee development at the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development reported over 600 square kilometers were planted with it in the 2007/2008 season, and expected to produce 30,000 tonnes of coffee beans.

Demographics

Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency

Central 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 198,181, of whom 98,975 are men and 99,206 are women; 20,979 or 10.59% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 14.4%. With an estimated area of 301.1 square kilometers, Yirgachefe has an estimated population density of 658.2 people per square kilometer, which is greater than the Zone average of 617.5.

In the 1994 Census this woreda had a population of 137,372, of whom 68,803 were men and 68,569 women; 11,579 or 8.43% of its population were urban dwellers. The three largest ethnic groups reported in Yirgachefe were the Gedeo

Gedeo people

The Gedeo are an ethnic group in southern Ethiopia. The Gedeo Zone in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region is named for this people...

 (81.34%), 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...

 (10.89%), 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...

 (3.48%), the Gurage

Gurage

Gurage is an ethnic group in Ethiopia. According to the 2007 national census, its population is 1,867,377 people , of whom 792,659 are urban dwellers. This is 2.53% of the total population of Ethiopia, or 7.52% of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region...

 (2.2%), and the Silte (0.73%); all other ethnic groups made up 1.36% of the population. Gedeo

Gedeo language

Gedeo is the name of a Highland East Cushitic language of the Afro-Asiatic family spoken in south central Ethiopia. Alternate names for the language include Derasa, Deresa, Darassa, Geddeo, Derasanya, Darasa. It is spoken by the Gedeo people, who live in the highland area, southwest of Dila and...

 was spoken as a first language by 81.6%, 10.2% spoke 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...

, and 6.78% 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 1.42% spoke all other primary languages reported. 39.96% of the population said they were Protestants

P'ent'ay

P'ent'ay or Pentay is a slang term widely used in modern Ethiopia, and among Ethiopians living abroad, to describe Ethiopian Christians who are not members of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo, Ethiopian Orthodox Tehadeso, Roman Catholic or Ethiopian Catholic churches...

, 27.49% observed traditional religions, 24.6% practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, 3.75% were Catholics

Roman Catholicism in Ethiopia

The Catholic Church in Ethiopia is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.The Ethiopian Catholic Church, the primary organization of Catholicism in the country, is especially close to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, whose doctrine and...

, and 2.39% 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...

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