Dulecha

Dulecha is one of the woredas in the Afar Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Administrative Zone 3, Dulecha is bordered on the south by Awash Fentale, on the west by the Argobba special woreda, on the north by the Administrative Zone 5, and on the east by the Awash River which separates it from Amibara. The largest settlement in Dulecha is Dulecha.

Elevations in this woreda range from 800 (along the Awash) to 1100 meters above sea level. The highest peak in Dulecha is the dormant volcano Mount Dofen (1151 meters). As of 2008, Dulecha has 239 kilometers of all-weather gravel road; about 41% of the total population has access to drinking water.^[1]

In August 2006 the Awash floods affected one village in Dulecha. Nearly all of the residents had previously left their homes for higher and safer grounds; current estimates put the displaced at 2,200. However, some 50-60 weak and elderly members of the community were reportedly surrounded by the flooding as they could not move out on their own.^[2]

Demographics

Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), this woreda has a total population of 20,687, of whom 11,202 are men and 9,485 women; with an area of 1,476.85 square kilometers, Dulecha has a population density of 14.01. While 1,190 or 5.75% are urban inhabitants, a further 8,003 or 38.69% are pastoralists. A total of 3,823 households were counted in this woreda, which results in an average of 5.4 persons to a household, and 3,880 housing units. 93.87% of the population said they were Muslim, 4.53% were Protestants, and 1.18% were Orthodox Christians^[3]

Notes

1. Hailu Ejara Kene, Baseline Survey of 55 Weredas of PCDP Phase II, Part I (Addis Ababa: August 2008), Annexes 16, 17 (accessed 9 October 2009)
2. "OCHA Situation Report No. 3 Floods – Ethiopia (Draft)", UN-OCHA (accessed 8 February 2009)
3. Census 2007 Tables: Afar Region, Tables 2.1, 2.4, 2.5, 3.1, 3.2 and 3.4.

Coordinates: 9°40′N 40°10′E / 9.667°N 40.167°E