Lanfro is one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Until it was included into the Silte Zone, Lanfro formed part of the Gurage Zone. Lanfro is bordered on the south by the Kembata Alaba and Tembaro Zone, on the west by Dalocha, on the north by Silte, and on the east by the Oromia Region. The major town in Lanfro is Torra.
Cash crops in Lanfro include pepper, which accounts for up to 60% of the cash income for many households, and teff. Butter is also an important income source, which can account for as much as 10% of the income for poor households.[1] This woreda has 7 kilometers of all-weather roads and 3 kilometers of dry-weather roads, for an average road density of 19 kilometers per 1000 square kilometers.[2]
It is reported that at a referendum in 2000 the Silte people unanimously voted to form their own Zone, Silt'e Zone, consisting of the woredas of Dalocha, Lanfro, Silte, Azernet-Berbere and Sankurra.
Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 114,848, of whom 57,271 are men and 57,577 are women; 4,434 or 3.86% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 6.3%. With an estimated area of 451.88 square kilometers, Lanfro has an estimated population density of 254.2 people per square kilometer, which is less than the Zone average of 278.3.[3]
The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 80,072 of whom 40,145 were males and 39,927 were females; 5,096 or 6.36% of its population were urban dwellers. The three largest ethnic groups reported in Lanfro were the Silte (89.92%), the Alaba (7.1%), and the Amhara (1.46%); all other ethnic groups made up 1.52% of the population. Silte was spoken as a first language by 89.98%, 7.05% Alaba, and 1.82% spoke Amharic; the remaining 1.15% spoke all other primary languages reported. 97.57% of the population said they were Muslim, and 2.32% practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.[4] Concerning education, 10.41% of the population were considered literate, which is less than the Zone average of 20.62%.[5] Concerning sanitary conditions, 64.65% of the urban houses and 9.81% of all houses had access to safe drinking water at the time of the census; 27.93% of the urban and 4.11% of all houses had toilet facilities.[6]