Gambela

Gambela was founded because of its location on the Baro, a tributary of the Nile, which was seen by both the British and the Ethiopians as an excellent highway for exporting coffee and other goods from the fertile Ethiopian Highlands to Sudan and Egypt. Emperor Menelik II granted Britain use of a port along the Baro on 15 May 1902, and in 1907 the port and a customs station were founded at Gambela. A shipping service run by Sudan Railways linked Khartoum with Gambela, a distance of 1,366 kilometers. According to Richard Pankhurst, by the mid-1930s boats sailed twice a month during the rainy season, taking seven days downstream and eleven upstream. …

Gambella's economy is driven by agriculture, livestock farming, fishing, and mineral resources. While subsistence farming is common, commercial farms like Karuturi Global offer jobs and lower food prices. Local farmers, encouraged by government projects, grow maize and sorghum and sell their produce in urban markets. Livestock farming, prevalent in areas like Akobo and Jikawo, faces challenges such as drought, limited grazing land, and cattle rustling from South Sudan, yet it remains vital to the economy. Rich in minerals, Gambella boasts long-established gold mines in Dimma and newly discovered oil fields, promising economic growth. Abundant water resources from rivers like Akobo, Baro, and Gilo, along with numerous lakes, support a thriving fishing industry, providing a crucial source of income for many residents.

Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia, Gambela has a total population of 39,022, an increase of 113.67% over the 1994 census, of whom 20,790 are men and 18,232 women. A total of 10,152 households were counted in this town, which results in an average of 3.8 persons to a household, and 9,595 housing units. The majority of the inhabitants said they were Protestant, with 57.04% of the population reporting they observed this belief, while 30.39% of the population practised Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, 9% were Muslim, and 4.08% were Catholic. According to the 1994 national census, its total population was 18,263 of whom 9852 were males and 8411 were females. The ethnic breakdown was 33.8% Nuer, 26.1% Anuak, 14% Oromo, 7.4% Amhara, 6.5% Tigray, 4.3% Kambaata, and 4.9% all others.