Tepi
| Tepi | |
|---|---|
 Tepi
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| Coordinates: 7°12′N 35°27′E / 7.200°N 35.450°ECoordinates: 7°12′N 35°27′E / 7.200°N 35.450°E | |
| Country | Ethiopia |
| Region | Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' |
| Zone | Sheka |
| Elevation | 1,097 m (3,599 ft) |
| Population (2005) | |
| • Total | 19,231 |
| Time zone | EAT (UTC+3) |
Tepi (also transliterated Tippi) is a town in southern Ethiopia. The vowels in the name are pronounced as in the English words tape and pea. Located in the Sheka Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People's Region (SNNPR), this town has a latitude and longitude of 7°12′N 35°27′E / 7.200°N 35.450°E with a mean elevation of 1,097 meters above sea level. The town is said to be named after a Majangir man who once had a bee hive in the large tree that stood in the marketplace.
Tepi hosts an airport (ICAO code TIE IATA code HATP) with a long, smooth but unpaved runway, the destination of scheduled flights by Ethiopian Airlines since the 1960s. Since 1966, the town has had a medical clinic and the same year the road to Tepi was improved. Electricity became available in 1984. The town also has postal service. This town has long been a market and commercial center for the area. Construction of all-weather roads were begun in the late 1970s, and by 1988 they extended from Tepi in three directions: south to Mizan Teferi (built with Cuban help), southeast to Shishinda (toward Bonga), and north to Gore. An elementary school was begun in Tepi about the time the Italians left, and the town has had a high school since about 1980. In 2009 Mizan Tepi University opened its Faculty of Engineering and Science in Tepi.
Near the city is the Tepi Coffee Plantation Project, which is the second-largest coffee plantation in Ethiopia covering 6,205 hectares. Run by the state, it produces over 2,500 tonnes of raw arabica beans each year. The surrounding area is very hilly and was densely forested. The area claims to be Ethiopia’s center for turmeric, and also exports cardamom, ginger, corn, honey, beeswax, timber, sugar cane, bananas, mangoes, and other fruit. Due to the fly-borne disease trypanosomiasis, cattle do poorly in the area, so none are used for plowing. The disease also prevents equines (horses, donkeys, and mules) from being raised there.
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