Fentale

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Fentale is one of the 180 woredas in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Misraq Shewa Zone located in the Great Rift Valley, Fentale is bordered on the south by the Arsi Zone, on the southwest by Boset, on the northwest by the Amhara Region, and on the east by the Afar Region. The capital of Fentale is Metehara.

Most parts of this woreda range from 900 to 1000 meters above sea level; Mount Fentale is the highest point. Rivers include the Awash and the Kesem. Points of interest include the Awash National Park in the north. A survey of the land in this woreda shows that 8.2% is arable or cultivable, 7.6% pasture, 28.8% forest, and the remaining 55.4% is considered degraded or otherwise unusable. The Metehara Sugar Cane Plantation covers 10,000 hectares. Fruits and vegetables are important cash crops.^[1].

Industry in the woreda includes 31 grain mills and the Metehara Sugar Cane Plantation. There were 593 licensed business enterprises in Fentale, which included 85 wholesalers, 294 retailers and 214 service providers of different types. There are also 16 Farmers Associations with 5,318 members but no Farmers Service Cooperatives. Fentale has 33 kilometers of dry-weather and 157 of all-weather road, for an average road density of 162.4 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers. About 100% of the urban, 22% of rural and 38% of the total population has access to drinking water.^[2]

Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 87,424, of whom 41,437 were males and 45,987 were females; 21,348 or 24.42% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 32.1%. With an estimated area of 1,169.85 square kilometers, Fentale has an estimated population density of 74.7 people per square kilometer, which is less than the Zone average of 181.7.^[3]

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