Isara (woreda)

Isara is a woreda (district) in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Arsi Zone, Isara is bordered on the south by Tena, on the west by the East Shewa Zone, on the north by Dodota, and on the east by Sude. The administrative center of Isara woreda is Bokoji.

The altitude of Isara ranges from 1500 to 2300 meters above sea level. Major rivers in the woreda include the Bulbula. A survey of the land use in this woreda shows that 21.6% is arable or cultivable, 14.6% pasture, 44.3% forest, and the remaining 19.5% is considered swampy, degraded or otherwise unusable. Teff, wheat, barley, maize, and beans are important crops.

Industries in Isara include grain mills. As of 2004, there are 14 Farmers Associations with 9,205 members and 7 Service Cooperatives with 4,342 members.

Based on figures published by the Central Statistical Agency in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 77,213, of whom 38,600 are men and 38,613 are women; 4,441 or 5.75% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 12.3%. With an estimated area of 395.36 square kilometers, Isara has a population density of 195.3 people per square kilometer.

The 1994 national census reported a total population for this woreda of 55,641 in 10,238 households, of whom 27,967 were men and 27,674 women; 2,728 or 4.9% of its population were urban dwellers at the time. The five largest ethnic groups reported in Isara were the Oromo (94.88%), the Amhara (3.18%), the Silte (0.59%), the Gurage (0.57%), and the Tigrayan (0.38%); all other ethnic groups made up 0.4% of the population. Oromiffa was spoken as a first language by 95.59%, 3.13% Amharic, 0.53% Silte, 0.48% Gurage, and 0.26% Tigrinya; the remaining 0.01% spoke all other primary languages reported. The majority of the inhabitants were Muslim, with 95.66% of the population reporting they observed this belief, while 3.53% of the population said they practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.