List of Towns, Villages and Cities in Basketo Zone

Basketo Zone is the smallest zone by area in the South Ethiopia Region, covering 411.09 square kilometres with its capital at Laska. The 2007 census recorded 56,689 people, and the 2022 projection is about 81,000. It became a zone in August 2023, having been the Basketo special woreda within the former SNNPR.

The zone is named for the Basketo people, who make up almost nine in ten residents and whose language is spoken nowhere else.

Woredas (Districts)

At the 2007 census Basketo was a single special woreda, so the figure of 56,689 covers both units together across 13,424 households.

Major Towns

Saattsa is also recorded as a rural centre. Settlement outside Laska is dispersed, with homesteads scattered across the ridges rather than gathered into villages.

Geography

Basketo is compact, hilly and well watered, sitting on the western slopes above the Omo lowlands at around 6°20′N 36°35′E. Its population density of 137.90 per square kilometre at the 2007 census is high for the area, a consequence of reliable rainfall on a small territory. The Berso, Sirso, Sanka, Usino and Ergino rivers drain the zone.

Basketo borders Gofa Zone to the north and east, South Omo Zone to the south and west, and Ari Zone to the southeast.

Demographics

The 2007 census recorded 56,689 people, 28,532 men and 28,157 women, of whom 5,215 lived in Laska. The 2022 projection is about 81,000; it is a Central Statistical Agency projection, not a count.

The Basketo make up 87.75 per cent of residents, and Basketo is the first language of 89.06 per cent. Wolayta, Amhara and Konso people also live in the zone. Amharic is used in administration and schooling.

Economy & Local Life

Basketo farms in gardens rather than fields. Enset is the staple, grown alongside sweet potatoes, yams and taro, all of which suit the steep, wet ground. The cash crops are coffee and korarima, the cardamom-like spice Aframomum corrorima, which grows in the forest understorey and is traded north towards Sawla and Addis Ababa. Honey is a further source of income. Cattle and goats are kept in small numbers, limited by the shortage of open grazing.

The zone’s size works against it economically: with only one town and a small internal market, most trade runs out to Sawla in Gofa Zone or south to Jinka.

Administrative History

Basketo was recognised as a special woreda under the former Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Region, a status that gave small ethnic groups a district answering directly to the region rather than through a zone. Ethiopia’s southern administrative map has been redrawn repeatedly since 2019: Sidama left the SNNPR in 2020, South West Ethiopia in 2021, and in August 2023 the remainder was split into Central Ethiopia and South Ethiopia after a referendum. Basketo went to South Ethiopia and was promoted from special woreda to zone at the same time, alongside Ale, Amaro, Burji and Gardula.

Getting There

Laska is reached by road from Sawla, the capital of Gofa Zone, turning west off the Arba Minch–Jinka route. Roads inside the zone are mostly dry-weather and the terrain is steep, so journeys are slow in the rains. The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Jinka, to the south in Ari Zone.

FAQ

Where is Basketo Zone?

In the west of the South Ethiopia Region, in the hills between Gofa Zone and the Omo lowlands, west of Sawla.

What is the capital of Basketo Zone?

Laska, the zone’s only town.

When did Basketo become a zone?

In August 2023, when the South Ethiopia Region was created following a referendum. It had been the Basketo special woreda.

How many people live in Basketo Zone?

56,689 at the 2007 census, with about 81,000 projected for 2022.

What language is spoken in Basketo?

Basketo, an Omotic language, spoken as a first language by 89.06 per cent of residents.

How big is Basketo Zone?

411.09 square kilometres, making it the smallest zone in the South Ethiopia Region by area.