Moyale, Somali (woreda)

Moyale is one of the woredas in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. Located at the extreme southwest corner of the Liben Zone, Moyale is bounded on the south by Kenya, on the west by the Oromia Region, on the north by Udet, and on the northeast by the Dawa, which separates Moyale from Filtu. The southernmost point of this woreda is the southernmost point of Ethiopia. Towns in this woreda include Chelago.

The elevations of this woreda range from about 500 meters along the Dawa to 1500 meters above sea level. According to the woreda administrator in 1994, Ibrahim Abdi, the ecological classification of the woreda is 10% mid-highland and 90% lowland. The total farming area in Moyale is 6,649 hectares, and the average land holding capacity is 2 hectares. The major crops planted are maize, teff and navy beans. The farm lands are suitable for sorghum, but it had not been planted as of the end of 1993.

Moyale is located at the frontier between the traditional territories of the Somali and Oromo peoples living in the southwestern part of Ethiopia. Accordingly, local groups of both Somali and Oromo nationalities have a vested interest in the control of the relatively rich pastoral resources in the district and therefore have been in conflict over its control. During the mid-1990s there were a number of neutral missions launched by the central government to mediate this conflict. One attempt to resolve the dispute between the two Regions was the October, 2004 referendum held in about 420 kebeles in 12 woredas across five zones of the Somali Region. According to the official results of the referendum, about 80% of the disputed areas have fallen under Oromia administration, though there were numerous allegations of voting irregularities in many of them.

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