Ogaden
-
What is the Ogaden region?
The Ogaden is an arid region in eastern Ethiopia, located on the barren plain between the Somalia-Ethiopia border and the Ethiopian Eastern Highlands. The major river in the area is the Shebeli. The inhabitants are Somali-speaking nomadic pastoralists. Oil and gas fields exist in the Ogaden, but regional instability has hindered their development.
Both Ethiopia and the Italian protectorate of Somaliland claimed the Ogaden in the late 19th century. Border conflicts and internal unrest continued after Somalia gained independence in 1960. The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) was formed in 1984 and has been responsible for recurring unrest with the government. In 2018, the strife between government forces and the ONLF began to subside.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Where is the Ogaden located within Ethiopia?
The Ogaden is an arid region in eastern Ethiopia, occupying the barren plain between the Somalia-Ethiopia border and the Ethiopian Eastern Highlands. The Shebeli and Genale rivers cross the lowlands and moderate the desert environment. The Ogaden is primarily home to Somali-speaking nomadic pastoralists. In terms of Ethiopia's topography, the Ogaden is found within the Eastern Lowlands, which slope toward the Somalian border.
4 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Which groups of people live in the Ogaden region?
The Ogaden region in eastern Ethiopia is home to Somali-speaking nomadic pastoralists. The Somali people, who are divided into numerous clans, constitute the majority of the population in Somalia. These clans also extend into the Ogaden region of Ethiopia, as well as northeastern Kenya and southern Djibouti. The most prominent Cushitic languages spoken in the Ogaden region include Somali, Oromo and Afar. In general, the people in this region share a homogeneous culture, language, and way of life.
4 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
What kind of climate and landscape does the Ogaden have?
The Ogaden region in eastern Ethiopia is an arid, barren plain situated between the Somalia-Ethiopia border and the Ethiopian Eastern Highlands. The Shebeli and Genale rivers are the major water sources, but overall, the area has low population density.
Because Ethiopia is located in the tropical latitudes, its lower elevations experience climatic conditions typical of tropical savanna or desert. The Eastern Lowlands, where the Ogaden is located, receive rain twice a year, in April–May and October–November, with two dry periods in between. Total annual precipitation varies from 20 to 40 inches (500 to 1,000 mm).
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
Why has the Ogaden region been involved in conflicts?
The Ogaden region has been involved in conflicts due to border disputes, internal unrest, and the desire for self-determination among its Somali-speaking population. In the late 19th century, both Ethiopia and Italian Somaliland claimed the Ogaden. After Somalia gained independence in 1960, border conflicts and internal unrest continued. The Western Somalia Liberation Front (WSLF) employed guerilla tactics against Ethiopian rule. Somalia invaded and occupied the region in 1977, with support from some Ogaden residents, but was driven out by Ethiopian forces in 1978. The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), formed in 1984, has also contributed to the recurring unrest. Though a peace agreement was signed in 2018, the region has experienced instability due to these factors.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How do the culture and economy of Ogaden affect daily life for its people?
The culture and economy of the Ogaden region significantly shape daily life for its people. The population is primarily Somali-speaking nomadic pastoralists, and their way of life is largely homogeneous with that of the people of Somalia, northeastern Kenya, and southern Djibouti.
The economy of the Ogaden is based on pastoralism in the arid region, but oil and gas fields have been discovered, though their development has been hindered by regional instability. Conflict between the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) and government forces has caused unrest, human rights abuses, and displacement, disrupting daily life.
2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Ogaden, arid region of eastern Ethiopia. It occupies the barren plain between the Somalia-Ethiopia border and the Ethiopian Eastern Highlands (on which Harer and Dire Dawa are situated). The major river of the region is the Shebeli, fed by ephemeral streams. At the southwestern edge of the Ogaden are the headwaters of the Genale (Jubba) River. The region has an overall low population density and is home to Somali-speaking nomadic pastoralists. The Ogaden contains oil and gas fields, but development has been hampered by instability in the region.
In the late 19th century the Ogaden was claimed by both Ethiopia and the Italian protectorate of Somaliland. The Ethiopian emperor Menilek II, having defeated the Italians at the Battle of Adwa in the north in 1896, forestalled them in the east by occupying the Ogaden with his army. Disagreement about the boundary remained, however. Italy occupied the Welwel (Walwal) oasis in the early 1930s and launched a full-scale invasion of the Ogaden from Somaliland in 1935. The next year Ethiopia, including the Ogaden, was proclaimed part of Italian East Africa. Although Ethiopia was liberated by Free French and British forces in 1941, the Ogaden remained under British administration until 1948.
Border conflict and internal unrest in the Ogaden resumed after Somalia became independent in 1960. The Western Somalia Liberation Front, spurred by Muktal Dahir, used guerrilla tactics to resist Ethiopian rule. The army of Somalia invaded and occupied the region in the second half of 1977, with encouragement from some of the Indigenous Somali population. In February and March 1978 Ethiopia, helped by Cuba and the Soviet Union, drove the Somali army out and proceeded to bomb and strafe Ogaden villages as reprisal for their complicity in the invasion. Villagers fled, and by the early 1980s the number of refugees in Somalia from the Ogaden exceeded 1,500,000, most of them women and children.
The region witnessed periodic unrest into the 21st century, and the Ethiopian government had a military presence there for various reasons—including insurgent activities that occurred periodically since the 1980s, tensions after the disputed 2005 general elections, and civil unrest in Somalia and Ethiopia’s intervention there in 2006. One group responsible for some of the recurring unrest with the government was the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), which was formed in 1984. Its most well-known attack came in April 2007, when a group of ONLF fighters stormed a Chinese-managed oil exploration facility in Obole; 65 Ethiopians and 9 Chinese workers were killed. The government responded by having the military further crack down on the region. Human rights abuses were committed by both the government forces and the ONLF during their running conflict.
The decades-long strife between government forces and the ONLF in the Ogaden showed signs of abating in 2018. In July a new reform-minded government removed the ONLF from a list of organizations it had designated as terrorist groups. The next month the ONLF unilaterally declared a cease-fire. Then in October the government and the ONLF signed a peace agreement that was intended to end the hostilities and provide a vehicle for the ONLF to pursue its objectives in a peaceful manner.