The 760 km long Omo is a river in
southwestern Ethiopia ( East Africa ). The year-round water-bearing
river originates west of Addis Ababa and east of Nek’emte in the
Ethiopian highlands . In the headwaters of the Omo River is the source
of healing Wolliso . It flows mainly in a southerly direction. The
southern part of the river, so its lower course forms the boundary
between the region of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples
Region and Oromia , where it forms the eastern boundary of the Omo
National Park . After flowing through the Mago National Park, the Omo
flows into Lake Turkana , just north of the border with Kenya .
Omo River people
Along
the Omo home to many Ethiopian tribes, such as the Nyangatom
(boomerang), Kara , Dassanetch (Geleb), Arbore , Bodi , Mursi , Surma
and Hamar . Many of them speak the named after the river omotischen
languages . The Lower Valley of the Omo plays an important role in the
planned development of tourism in Ethiopia. It belongs since 1980 to
World Heritage Site of UNESCO . Here were the other fossils Omo 1 and
Omo 2 recovered to the anatomically modern humans ( Homo sapiens ) are
attributed, and with an age of at least 130,000 years (according to
recent dating probably even 195,000 years) of the oldest finds of the
kind of count.
The aforementioned Omo National Park ,
with 4068 km ² the largest of Ethiopia, is one of the most wild, but
most rarely visited national parks in Africa. The Omo River is to be
expanded with several hydroelectric power plants (Gibe I to V). Gibe I
and II of which are planned already in operation, under construction and
Gibe Gibe III, IV and V. In July 2006, the Ethiopian government signed
an agreement with the Italian company Salini Costruttori, regarding the
construction of the Gibe III , the largest dam in the country. The dam
will block the southwestern section of the Omo River, from the Ethiopian
highlands to the sea flows Turkana in Kenya. Human rights organizations
such as Survival International will assume that threatens not only the
construction of the environment in the Omo valley but also the
livelihoods of more than 100,000 tribal people in Ethiopia and Kenya.
Omo River
