Legehida

Legehida (also called Beltu Legahida) is one of the 180 woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Bale Zone, Legehida is bordered on the south by Seweyna, on the southwest by Gaserana Gololcha, and all other sides by the Shebelle River which separates this woreda from the Mirab Hararghe Zone on the northwest, the Misraq Hararghe Zone on the northeast and from the Somali Region on the east. The woreda capital is Beltu; other towns include Sheikh Hussein.

Mount Goden is the highest point in this woreda; other major peaks include Mounts Gerecha and Keban. Perennial rivers include the Tare and Harkiso-Fik. A survey of the land in this woreda shows that 16.5% is arable or cultivable (4.24% was under annual crops), 50% pasture, 28.3% forest, and the remaining 5.2% is considered swampy, mountainous or otherwise unusable. Wheat, teff and corn are important crops. [ [http://oromiagov.org/Socio%20Economic%20Profile/bale/bale%20Zone.pdf "Socio-economic profile of the Bale Zone"] Government of Oromia Region (last accessed 1 August 2006).] Although coffee is an important cash crop, less than 2,000 hectares are planted with it. [ [http://www.oromiacoffeeunion.org/production.htm "Coffee Production"] Oromia Coffee Cooperative Union website]

No licensed industry exists in this woreda, although there five retailers and one service provider. There were 17 Farmers Associations with 6149 members and no Farmers Service Cooperatives. Legehida has no roads, leaving Beltu 65 kilometers from the nearest all-weather road; the "Socio-Economic profile" for the Bale Zone describes Legehida as "one of the remotest districts in the Zone". About 4.7% of the total population has access to drinking water. [Government of Oromia Region, "Socio-economic profile."]

Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 52,568, of whom 26,414 were males and 26,154 were females; 1,225 or 2.33% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 13.5%. With an estimated area of 5,799.69 square kilometers, Legehida has an estimated population density of 9.1 people per square kilometer, which is less than the Zone average of 27. [ [http://www.csa.gov.et/text_files/2005_national_statistics.htm CSA 2005 National Statistics] , Tables B.3 and B.4]

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