List of Towns, Villages and Cities in Gamo Zone

Gamo Zone is a highland zone of the South Ethiopia Region, with Arba Minch as its capital. The zone’s 2007 census population was 1,123,388, and the Central Statistical Agency projects about 1.63 million for 2022. It runs from the shores of Lake Abaya and Lake Chamo up onto the Gamo Highlands, topping out at 4,207 metres on Mount Guge.

Gamo took its present form in 2019, when the old Gamo Gofa Zone was split into Gamo and Gofa. It moved from the former SNNPR into the new South Ethiopia Region on 18 August 2023.

Woredas (Districts)

Gamo has about twenty rural woredas and town administrations, several of them created after 2007. The table gives the nine woredas that existed at census time with their figures; the later units follow.

Woredas and town administrations created since the census include Gacho Baba, Garda Marta, Geresse, Kogota and Kucha Alpha, along with the town administrations of Arba Minch, Chencha, Kamba, Birbir, Geresse and Selam Ber.

Major Towns

Other market and administrative centres include Kamba, Selam Ber, Birbir, Geresse, Dorse, Bonke, Boreda and Mirab Abaya.

Geography

The zone straddles the western wall of the Great Rift Valley. Arba Minch sits at the foot of the escarpment between Lake Abaya and Lake Chamo, and the Nechisar National Park occupies the neck of land between the two lakes. West of the town the ground climbs steeply to the Gamo Highlands, a densely farmed plateau above 2,500 metres where Chencha and Dorse stand. Mount Guge, at 4,207 metres, is the high point.

Gamo borders Wolayita Zone to the north, Gofa Zone to the west, South Omo Zone to the southwest, Gardula Zone and Ale Zone to the south, and Amaro Zone across Lake Abaya to the southeast.

Demographics

The 2007 census counted 1,123,388 people in the woredas that now form Gamo. The 2022 projection is about 1,626,500, and it is a projection: Ethiopia has held no census since 2007.

Gamo is the first language of 63.75 per cent of residents and Gofa of 22.01 per cent, with Amharic at 3.47 per cent. The Gamo people make up 64.61 per cent of the population and the Gofa 22.08 per cent. Protestants account for 53.41 per cent, Ethiopian Orthodox Christians 31.54 per cent and traditional religions 11.13 per cent.

Economy & Local Life

The highlands grow enset, barley, wheat and apples, and Chencha is known nationally for its weavers, who produce the cotton gabi and netela sold across Ethiopia. The lowlands around the lakes grow maize, cotton and bananas under irrigation, and fishing on Lake Chamo supplies Arba Minch’s market. Arba Minch University and the tourist traffic to Nechisar and the crocodile market give the capital a service economy unusual for the region.

Getting There

Arba Minch lies at the end of the surfaced road from Addis Ababa through Hosaena, Wolaita Sodo and Sodo Zuria. Arba Minch Airport has scheduled flights from Addis Ababa. From Arba Minch, roads run west to Sawla, south to Gidole and Konso, and up the escarpment to Chencha and Dorse.

FAQ

Where is Gamo Zone?

In the South Ethiopia Region, on the western side of the Rift Valley between Lake Abaya and Lake Chamo and the highlands above them.

What is the capital of Gamo Zone?

Arba Minch, projected at about 201,000 people for 2022.

When was Gamo Zone created?

In 2019, when Gamo Gofa Zone was divided into Gamo and Gofa. It joined the new South Ethiopia Region in August 2023.

How many woredas are in Gamo Zone?

About twenty woredas and town administrations, nine of which existed at the 2007 census.

What language is spoken in Gamo?

Gamo, an Omotic language, is the first language of 63.75 per cent of residents; Gofa is spoken by 22.01 per cent.