Donga people

The Donga are one of the indigenous ethnic groups of people who inhabit Southern Ethiopia. Donga, as a geographic region, is situated at about 300 km south from Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. It borders Kembatta to the west, Wolaita to the south, Hadiya to the North, and Tembaro to the East.

Donga's administrative centre is Hadero town. Other important towns include Donga Tunto and Mazoria.

The language of the people is called Donga or "Dongissata", which is part of the family of East Cushitic languages; it is mainly spoken by Donga people. It is very closely related to Kembatta.

The Dongas are predominantly agriculturalists, who conduct intensive farming, cultivating coffee, enset, and some grains. The "enset" plant constitutes the staple crop, supplemented by a variety of cereal and root crops. Cultivation is carried out in closely clustered villages throughout fertile area, hills, mountains peaks and valleys. The livelihood of the population is based mainly on intensive mixed farming, and many rural communities are stricken by extreme rural poverty.

The population of Donga is estimated to be around 100,000. A sizable portion of the population lives outside Donga region. The area is estimated to be about 435 square kilometers, and is one of the most densely populated areas of Ethiopia. The average population density of the area is 300 people per square kilometer, whereas the national average population density is 42 people per square kilometer.

There is a serious shortage of farming land in the region. The peasants are hard working skilled farmers, and have developed remarkable survival strategies to cope with rapidly degrading natural resources and deteriorating environmental conditions.

Presently, many young people are obliged to seek a living in other parts of the country, looking for opportunities for off-farm employment. Some relocate to other remote parts of the country as part of the government resettlement strategy. As a coping strategy for land scarcity, a growing number of the younger generation has entered other formal sectors including trade, education and employment in the city areas.