Dire Dawa is a chartered city administration in eastern Ethiopia, one of only two in the country alongside Addis Ababa. It covers 1,213 square kilometres and sits at 1,276 metres on the plain below the Harar highlands. It reports directly to the federal government rather than to any region. The 2007 census counted 341,834 residents across the administration; the current official projection is about 535,000. The city grew from a railway station opened in 1902 and remains Ethiopia’s main inland freight and industrial hub after the capital.
| Status | Chartered city administration |
|---|---|
| Area | 1,213 km² |
| Elevation | 1,276 m |
| Coordinates | 9°36′N 41°52′E |
| Founded | 24 December 1902 |
| Population (2007 census) | 341,834 |
| Population (2022 projection) | about 535,000 |
| Main languages | Oromo, Somali, Amharic |
Administrative Divisions
Dire Dawa is not a zone and has no woredas in the ordinary sense. The charter splits it into two districts. The city proper holds nine urban kebeles; the rural district of Gurgura holds 38 rural kebeles of peasant associations. A single council and a mayor administer both.
| Division | Kebeles | Population (2007) |
|---|---|---|
| City proper (urban) | 9 | 233,224 |
| Gurgura (rural) | 38 | 108,610 |
| Total administration | 47 | 341,834 |
Towns & Rural Localities
Almost a third of the administration’s people live outside the city, in villages spread across the plain and the hills to the south and west. Melka Jebdu and Sabiyan sit on the city’s edge and function as suburbs; the rest are farming and herding settlements.
- Adada Gende Dima
- Adiga
- Afretu
- Aroreyti
- Aselso
- Ayale Gumgum
- Beke Halo
- Belewa
- Bira’i
- Bishan Bahe
- Dera
- Dima Goro
- Dinley
- Dodota
- Felema
- Gabro
- Garegumgum
- Gololcha
- Halo Busa
- Handaka
- Hidenu
- Hula Hulul
- Ido Dini
- Igo Hambro
- Ija Aneni
- Ile Amen
- Jedene
- Jeldesa
- Jelo Belina
- K’ench’era
- Keraru
- Kerbeja
- Kurfa Hichini
- Kurfa Kata
- Kurfa Mudi
- Lasdere
- Lega Oda Mirga
- Lege Bira
- Legedol
- Legeoda Gunufta
- Melka Jebdu
- Mermarsa
- Mudi Aneno
- Oboshe
- Oda
- Ortu
- Oyite
- Sabiyan
- Sala Asaleh
- Sedek’o
- Tome
- Urgo
- Wachu
- Wahel
- Ware Roble
Geography
The administration is an enclave. The Oromia Region surrounds it on the south and west, along East Hararghe Zone. The Somali Region lies to the north and east, along Sitti Zone. The Harari Region is about 55 kilometres to the southeast.
The city stands where the Harar escarpment meets the plain, and the Dechatu, a seasonal river, runs through it in a wide sandy bed. That bed is dry most of the year and floods hard after storms in the hills; flash flooding is the city’s recurring hazard. Ground rises south towards Harar and falls north towards the Somali lowlands. The climate is hot and semi-arid, with a mean annual temperature of 25.9 °C and about 670 millimetres of rain. Most of it falls in March and April, then again in July and August.
Demographics
The 2007 census recorded 341,834 people: 233,224 in the city (68.23%) and 108,610 in the rural kebeles (31.77%). The current projection for the whole administration is about 535,000, with roughly 343,000 in the urban core. Ethiopia has held no full census since 2007, so all later figures are projections.
No group holds a majority. Oromo made up about 46% of the 2007 population, Somali 24%, Amhara 20% and Gurage 4.5%. Muslims accounted for 70.9%, Ethiopian Orthodox Christians 25.6%, Protestants 2.8% and Catholics 0.4%. Afaan Oromo, Somali and Amharic are all in daily use, and Arabic is common in trade.
Economy & Industry
Dire Dawa was built as a railway town and still works as a transit point. Freight from the port of Djibouti moves through the city to the interior, and a dry port handles containers. Manufacturing is the second pillar: cotton textiles, cement, and food and beverage processing. The federal Dire Dawa Industrial Park targets garment and textile export production. Livestock, khat, sorghum and vegetables come in from the surrounding kebeles and from East Hararghe. Kefira market in the old town is the main wholesale ground. Dire Dawa University, founded in 2006, is the largest public employer after the administration itself.
Getting There
Dire Dawa lies about 445 kilometres east of Addis Ababa by road, on the highway that branches off the Djibouti corridor at Awash. Harar is roughly 55 kilometres southeast by a climbing road. Aba Tenna Dejazmach Yilma International Airport, on the city’s edge, has daily flights to Addis Ababa and regional services. The Addis Ababa–Djibouti standard-gauge railway serves the city from a station about 10 kilometres northwest. The older metre-gauge line terminated in the city centre; it reached the site in 1902 and Addis Ababa in 1917. Djibouti is 327 kilometres away by rail.
FAQ
Where is Dire Dawa?
In eastern Ethiopia, about 445 kilometres east of Addis Ababa and 55 kilometres northwest of Harar, enclosed by the Oromia and Somali regions.
Is Dire Dawa a city or a region?
Both, in effect. It is a chartered city administration that reports directly to the federal government, with the same standing as a region. Addis Ababa is the only other one.
What is the population of Dire Dawa?
341,834 at the 2007 census, of whom 233,224 lived in the city itself. The current official projection is about 535,000 for the whole administration.
How many kebeles does Dire Dawa have?
47 in total: nine urban kebeles in the city proper and 38 rural kebeles in the Gurgura district.
Why was Dire Dawa founded?
The Franco-Ethiopian railway from Djibouti reached the site in 1902 and stopped short of Harar because the escarpment was too steep. A station town was laid out on the plain instead, and it opened on 24 December 1902.
What languages are spoken in Dire Dawa?
Afaan Oromo, Somali and Amharic are the main languages, matching the city’s mixed population. Arabic is widely used in trade.