Shashamene (woreda)

Shashamene Zuria is one of the woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. It is named after the town of Shashamene what was separated from this woreda. Part of the Mirab Arsi Zone located in the Great Rift Valley, Shashamene is bordered on the south by the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Region, on the west by Shala, on the north by Arsi Negele, on the east by the Kore, and on the southeast by Kofele. The largest town in Shashamene is Kuyera.

Except for the eastern portion, the altitude of this woreda ranges from 1500 to 2300 meters above sea level; Mount Abaro is the highest point. Rivers include the Dedeba Tina, Melka Oda and Laftu; small parts of Lakes Awasa and Chelaka lie in Shashamene. A survey of the land in this woreda shows that 65% is arable or cultivable, 15% pasture, 2.4% forest, and the remaining 16.6% is considered swampy, degraded or otherwise unusable. The main crops produced for consumption and cash were potatoes, corn, wheat, barley and teff. In 1996, horse beans and peas were commonly grown, but by 2005 cultivation has mostly stopped because of theft; this has forced the locals to buy peas to prepare shiro, a common dish. Another crop no longer grown is finger millet (known as dagusa), because it takes a long time to cultivate and it demands labor year-around. Although Coffee is also an important cash crop of this woreda, less than 20 square kilometers are planted with this crop.

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