Decha

Decha is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. The name Decha comes from one of the provinces in the former Kingdom of Kaffa, which had the approximately same boundaries. Part of the Keficho Shekicho Zone, Decha is bordered on the south by the Omo River which separates it from the Debub Omo Zone, on the southwest by the Bench Maji Zone, on the northwest by Chena, on the north by Ginbo, on the northeast by Telo, and on the southeast by the Denchya River which separates it from the Konta special woreda. The major town in Decha is Chiri.

According to a 2004 report, Decha had 47 kilometers of all-weather roads and 5 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 18 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers.^[1] The southern tip of Decha is included in the territory of the Omo National Park.

Demographics

Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 106,026, of whom 53,675 are men and 52,351 women; 3,000 or 2.83% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 9.7%. With an estimated area of 2,841.26 square kilometers, Decha has an estimated population density of 37.3 people per square kilometer, which is less than the Zone average of 81.9.^[2]

In the 1994 national census Decha had a population of 74,792, of whom 36,964 were men and 37,828 women; 1,655 or 2.21% of its population were urban dwellers. The five largest ethnic groups reported in this woreda were the Kafficho (78.23%), the Bench (7.69%), the Chara (5.57%), the Nao (5.13%), and the Me'en (1.81%); all other ethnic groups made up 1.57% of the population. Kafa was spoken as a first language by 78.67% of the inhabitants, 8.15% spoke Bench, 5.5% Chara, 4.62% Nayi, and 1.24% spoke Me'en; the remaining 1.82% spoke all other primary languages reported.^[3] 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 11.24% of the urban houses and 60.05% of all houses had access to safe drinking water at the time of the census, while about 9.83% of the urban and 73.45% of the total had toilet facilities.^[4]

Notes

1. ^ "Detailed statistics on roads", SNNPR Bureau of Finance and Economic Development website (accessed 15 September 2009)
2. ^ CSA 2005 National Statistics, Tables B.3 and B.4
3. ^ 1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region, Vol. 1, part 1, Tables 2.1, 2.12, 2.15 (accessed 30 December 2008)
4. ^ 1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region, Vol. 1, part 1, Tables 2.1, 2.12, 2.19, 3.5, 3.7, 6.3, 6.11, 6.13 (accessed 30 December 2008)

Coordinates: 6°50′N 36°10′E / 6.833°N 36.167°E / 6.833; 36.167