List of Towns, Villages and Cities in Arsi Zone

Arsi Zone (Afaan Oromoo: Godina Arsii) is one of the zones of Ethiopia’s Oromia Region, with its administrative centre at Asella. The zone covers 19,825 square kilometres and recorded 2,637,657 people at the 2007 census, the last full national count. It takes its name from the Arsi Oromo, and its highland woredas form one of Ethiopia’s main wheat and barley belts.

Woredas (Districts)

Arsi Zone is divided into 24 rural woredas plus the town administration of Asella. Figures below are the 2007 census count and the Central Statistical Service 2022 projection.

Major Towns

Dera, Etaya and Kersa are the other significant market towns. Smaller settlements across the zone are rural kebele centres serving farming communities.

Geography

Arsi sits east and south-east of the Ethiopian Rift Valley, on the Arsi–Bale highland massif. Elevation runs from about 1,500 metres on the Rift floor near Ziway Dugda to 4,036 metres at Mount Chilalo, the zone’s highest point. Mount Kaka and Mount Gugu are the other main peaks. The Wabe and Katar rivers drain the western slopes toward the Rift lakes; eastern streams feed the Wabe Shebelle system.

The zone borders Bale Zone to the south-east, West Arsi Zone to the south-west, East Shewa Zone to the west and north-west, West Hararghe Zone to the east, and the Afar Region to the north.

Demographics

The 2007 census recorded 1,323,424 men and 1,314,233 women. Afaan Oromoo was the first language of 81.38 per cent of residents and Amharic of 17.76 per cent. Muslims made up 58.1 per cent of the population, followers of Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity 40.01 per cent and Protestants 1.43 per cent. Zone-level totals for later years are CSA projections, not census counts.

Economy & Local Life

Arsi is a surplus grain zone. Wheat and barley dominate the highlands above 2,300 metres, with teff, faba beans, field peas and linseed on the mid-slopes and maize and haricot beans in the warmer lowlands. Cattle, sheep and horses are kept throughout, and the highland woredas around Bekoji and Limuna Bilbilo are known for dairy. Coffee is grown on a small scale, about 2,198 tonnes in 2005.

Asella hosts a malt factory supplying Ethiopia’s breweries and a long-established agricultural research and extension network dating to the Chilalo Agricultural Development Unit of the 1960s. Bekoji, at 2,800 metres, has produced a generation of Olympic distance runners, and altitude training brings steady visitor traffic. Weekly markets in Asella, Iteya, Huruta and Abomsa move grain, livestock and dairy toward Adama and Addis Ababa.

Getting There

Asella lies about 175 kilometres from Addis Ababa. The route runs east on the Addis Ababa–Adama expressway to Adama, then south-east on an asphalt road for roughly 75 kilometres. Buses and minibuses run the Adama–Asella leg through the day. Bekoji is a further 60 kilometres south of Asella, and Abomsa about 100 kilometres east. The nearest airports are at Adama and Bishoftu; there is no scheduled passenger service inside the zone.

FAQ

Where is Arsi Zone?

Arsi Zone is in the eastern part of Oromia Region, south-east of the Rift Valley and about 175 kilometres from Addis Ababa by road.

What is the capital of Arsi Zone?

Asella, a highland town of about 139,500 people on the 2022 projection.

How many woredas are in Arsi Zone?

Twenty-four rural woredas plus the Asella town administration.

What language is spoken in Arsi Zone?

Afaan Oromoo is the first language of about 81 per cent of residents, with Amharic spoken by about 18 per cent.

What is the highest mountain in Arsi Zone?

Mount Chilalo, at 4,036 metres, south-east of Asella.

What crops are grown in Arsi?

Wheat and barley are the main crops, alongside teff, faba beans, field peas, maize and linseed.