Legehida

Legehida (also called Beltu Legahida) is one of the 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 administrative center of the woreda is Beltu; other towns in Legehida include Sheikh Hussein.

Overview

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 in 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.^[1] Although coffee is an important cash crop, less than 2,000 hectares are planted with it.^[2]

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.^[1]

Demographics

The 2007 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 62,521, of whom 31,286 were men and 31,235 were women; 2,016 or 3.23% of its population were urban dwellers. The majority of the inhabitants said they were Muslim, with 99.22% of the population reporting they observed this belief.^[3]

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.^[4]

The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 38,052, of whom 19,031 were men and 19,021 women; 683 or 1.79% of its population were urban dwellers at the time. The largest ethnic group reported in Legehida was the Oromo (99.5%); Oromiffa was spoken as a first language by 96.95%, while the remaining 3.05% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were Muslim, with 99.89% of the population having reported they practiced that belief.^[5]

Notes

1. Socio-economic profile of the Bale Zone Government of Oromia Region (last accessed 1 August 2006).
2. "Coffee Production" Oromia Coffee Cooperative Union website
3. 2007 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Oromia Region, Vol. 1, Tables 2.1, 2.5, 3.4 (accessed 13 January 2012)
4. CSA 2005 National Statistics, Tables B.3 and B.4
5. 1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Oromia Region, Vol. 1, part 1, Tables 2.1, 2.7, 2.12, 2.15, 2.17 (accessed 6 April 2009).

Coordinates: 7°45′N 41°15′E / 7.750°N 41.250°E