Emni Ankelalu

Emni Ankelalu is a tabia or municipality in the Dogu'a Tembien district of the Tigray Region of Ethiopia. The tabia centre is in Mitslal Afras village, located approximately 20 km to the east of the woreda town Hagere Selam.

Emni Ankelalu
A homestead in Emni Ankelalu
Emni Ankelalu
Location within Ethiopia
Coordinates: 13°39′N 39°22′E
CountryEthiopia
RegionTigray
ZoneDebub Misraqawi (Southeastern)
WoredaDogu'a Tembien
Area
 • Land40.04 km2 (15.46 sq mi)
Elevation
2,020 m (6,630 ft)
Time zoneUTC+3 (EAT)

Geography

The tabia a hilly limestone area, along Giba River, north and away from the main road. The highest peak is Miqmat' Awra hill that occupies the centre (2195 m a.s.l.) and the lowest place at the outlet of May Qarano to Giba river (1750 m a.s.l.).

Quarry in Antalo Limestone at the lower, southern border of Emni Ankelalu

Geology

The following geological formations are present:[1]

Geomorphology and soils

The main geomorphic unit is the gently undulating Agula shale plateau with dolerite. Corresponding soil types are:[4]

  • Dominant soil type: stony, dark cracking clays with good natural fertility (Vertic Cambisol)
  • Associated soil types
    • rock outcrops, stony and shallow soils (Lithic Leptosol)
    • red-brownish loamy soils with good natural fertility (Chromic Luvisol)
  • Inclusions
    • deep, dark cracking clays on calcaric material with good fertility but poor drainage (Vertisol)
See also: Soil in Dogu'a Tembien

Climate

The rainfall pattern shows a very high seasonality with 70 to 80% of the annual rain falling in July and August. Mean temperature in Mitslal Afras is 20.8 °C, oscillating between average daily minimum of 12.4 °C and maximum of 30.8 °C. The contrasts between day and night air temperatures are much larger than seasonal contrasts.[5]

Hydrology
Mitslal Afras hand pump

In this area with rains that last only for a couple of months per year, the only permanent water is in Giba river. There are hardly any springs.[6] Hence, reservoirs of different sizes allow harvesting runoff from the rainy season for further use in the dry season.[7] There are traditional surface water harvesting ponds, particularly in places without permanent springs, called rahaya, and also horoyo, household ponds, recently constructed through campaigns.[8]

Giba dam building site in 2019

A major change is the construction of Lake Giba, a 350 million m³ reservoir on the Giba river that will occupy the whole lower eastern side of the tabia. The reservoir is mainly intended to provide water to Mekelle. The lithology of the dam building site is Antalo Limestone.[9] Part of its water is anticipated to be lost through seepage;[10] the positive side-effect is that this will contribute to groundwater recharge and river baseflow in the downstream areas, which largely belong to tabias Addi Azmera and Debre Nazret.[7] The lower villages of Emni Ankelalu will see their environment changed from dryland to lakeshore villages.

Settlements

The tabia centre Mitslal Afras holds a few administrative offices, a health post, a primary school, and some small shops. There are a few more primary schools across the tabia. The main other populated places are:[11]

  • Addi Ateroman
  • Worgesha
  • Kurji
  • Miqmat' Awra

Agriculture and livelihood

The population lives essentially from crop farming, supplemented with off-season work in nearby towns. The land is dominated by farmlands which are clearly demarcated and are cropped every year. Hence the agricultural system is a permanent upland farming system.[12] The farmers have adapted their cropping systems to the spatio-temporal variability in rainfall.[13]

History and culture

History

The history of the tabia is strongly confounded with the history of Tembien.

Religion and churches

Most inhabitants are Orthodox Christians. The following churches are located in the tabia:

  • Kidane Mihret
  • Miqmat'Awra Maryam

Inda Siwa, the local beer houses

In the main villages, there are traditional beer houses (Inda Siwa), often in unique settings, which are a good place for resting and chatting with the local people. Most renown in the tabia is Kndahafti Mezegebe's inn at Mitslal Afras.[6]

Roads and communication

The main road Mekelle – Hagere Selam – Abiy Addi runs some kilometres south of the tabia.

Schools

Almost all children of the tabia are schooled,[14] though in some schools there is lack of classrooms, directly related to the large intake in primary schools over the last decades.[15] Schools in the tabia include Mitslal Afras school.

Tourism

Its mountainous nature and proximity to Mekelle makes the tabia fit for tourism.[16]

Touristic attraction

Geotouristic sites

The high variability of geological formations and the rugged topography invites for geological and geographic tourism or "geotourism".[17] Geosites in the tabia include:

  • Confluence of Sulluh and Genfel rivers, inside deep gorges, called "Shugu'a Shugu'i"
  • May Qarano tufa dam (now occupied by the Giba dam building works)
  • Exclosures
  • Limestone landscape
  • Limestone quarries

Birdwatching

Birdwatching (for the species, see the main Dogu'a Tembien page) can be done particularly in exclosures and forests. The following bird-watching sites have been inventoried[18] in the tabia and mapped.[11]

  • Mitlal Afras church forest
  • Miq'mat Awra church forest
  • Slope forest west of Miq'mat Awra

Trekking route

Trekking route 24 has been established in this tabia.[19] It follows the Giba and Suluh gorges upstream along the rivers, and then continues westbound over Miqmat' Awra hill. Once the Lake Giba will be filled, it will be impossible to visit these gorges. The track is not marked on the ground but can be followed using downloaded .GPX files.[20]

Accommodation and facilities

The facilities are very basic.[21] One may be invited to spend the night in a rural homestead or ask permission to pitch a tent. Hotels are available in Hagere Selam and Mekelle.

More detailed information

For more details on environment, agriculture, rural sociology, hydrology, ecology, culture, etc., see the overall page on the Dogu'a Tembien district.

References
  1. Sembroni, A.; Molin, P.; Dramis, F. (2019). Regional geology of the Dogu'a Tembien massif. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  2. Tefera, M.; Chernet, T.; Haro, W. Geological Map of Ethiopia (1:2,000,000). Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Ethiopian Institute of Geological Survey.
  3. Moeyersons, J. and colleagues (2006). "Age and backfill/overfill stratigraphy of two tufa dams, Tigray Highlands, Ethiopia: Evidence for Late Pleistocene and Holocene wet conditions". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. 230 (1–2): 162–178. doi:10.1016/j.palaeo.2005.07.013.
  4. Nyssen, Jan; Tielens, Sander; Gebreyohannes, Tesfamichael; Araya, Tigist; Teka, Kassa; Van De Wauw, Johan; Degeyndt, Karen; Descheemaeker, Katrien; Amare, Kassa; Haile, Mitiku; Zenebe, Amanuel; Munro, Neil; Walraevens, Kristine; Gebrehiwot, Kindeya; Poesen, Jean; Frankl, Amaury; Tsegay, Alemtsehay; Deckers, Jozef (2019). "Understanding spatial patterns of soils for sustainable agriculture in northern Ethiopia's tropical mountains". PLOS ONE. 14 (10): e0224041. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0224041. PMC 6804989. PMID 31639144.
  5. Jacob, M. and colleagues (2019). Dogu'a Tembien's Tropical Mountain Climate. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_3. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  6. What do we hear from the farmers in Dogu'a Tembien? [in Tigrinya]. Hagere Selam, Ethiopia. 2016. p. 100.
  7. Nigussie Haregeweyn, and colleagues (2006). "Reservoirs in Tigray: characteristics and sediment deposition problems". Land Degradation and Development. 17: 211–230. doi:10.1002/ldr.698.
  8. Developers and farmers intertwining interventions: the case of rainwater harvesting and food-for-work in Degua Temben, Tigray, Ethiopia
  9. Gebremedhin Berhane, and colleagues (2013). "Geological challenges in constructing the proposed Geba dam site, northern Ethiopia". Bulletin of Engineering Geology and the Environment. 72 (3–4): 339–352. doi:10.1007/s10064-013-0480-9. ProQuest 1655734342.
  10. Gebremedhin Berhane, and colleagues (2013). "Water leakage investigation of micro-dam reservoirs in Mesozoic sedimentary sequences in Northern Ethiopia". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 79: 98–110. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2012.10.004.
  11. Jacob, M. and colleagues (2019). Geo-trekking map of Dogu'a Tembien (1:50,000). In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  12. Naudts, J (2002). Les Hautes Terres de Tembien, Tigré, Ethiopie; Résistance et limites d'une ancienne civilisation agraire; Conséquences sur la dégradation des terres [MSc dissertation]. CNEARC, Montpellier, France.
  13. Frankl, A. and colleagues (2013). "The effect of rainfall on spatio‐temporal variability in cropping systems and duration of crop cover in the Northern Ethiopian Highlands". Soil Use and Management. 29 (3): 374–383. doi:10.1111/sum.12041.
  14. Socio-demographic profile, food insecurity and food-aid based response. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. 2019. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  15. Hartjen, C.A. and Priyadarsini, S., 2012. Denial of Education. In The Global Victimization of Children (pp. 271-321). Springer, Boston, MA. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4614-2179-5_8 .
  16. Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. 2019. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  17. Miruts Hagos and colleagues (2019). Geosites, Geoheritage, Human-Environment Interactions, and Sustainable Geotourism in Dogu'a Tembien. In: Geo-Trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains, the Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_1. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  18. Aerts, R.; Lerouge, F.; November, E. (2019). Birds of forests and open woodlands in the highlands of Dogu'a Tembien. In: Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains - The Dogu'a Tembien District. SpringerNature. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  19. Nyssen, Jan (2019). Description of Trekking Routes in Dogu'a Tembien. GeoGuide. Springer-Nature. pp. 557–675. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_38. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
  20. https://www.openstreetmap.org/traces/tag/nyssen-jacob-frankl
  21. Nyssen, Jan (2019). "Logistics for the Trekker in a Rural Mountain District of Northern Ethiopia". Geo-trekking in Ethiopia's Tropical Mountains. GeoGuide. Springer-Nature. pp. 537–556. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-04955-3_37. ISBN 978-3-030-04954-6.
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