BY LAKACHEW ATINAFU
Recently, The South Nation Nationalities and Peoples State (SNNPS) has inaugurated the Hambericho mountain with 777 stair cases in Kembata Zonal Administration aiming to enhance the eco system development, promote the tourism sector and benefit the public of the state.
As it has been indicated on the projects inauguration at the Presence of the State house speaker Helen Debebe and Higher Officials of the State, the stair case will enable visitors to easily climb the mountain which measures more than 3000M above sea level
The new mountain development project is strange and might be uncommon as it incorporated multispectral programs to achieve stretched goals; help the realization of overall development the country aspire through effective utilization of resources at hand.
The mountain eco system development can be taken as an instance of smart move as it integrate tourism development, boosting job creation and innovation and fostering environmental protection reengineering nature for development.
Upon inauguration, The State Agriculture and Natural Resource Bureau Head Anteneh Fekadu said that kembata has untapped potentials of tourism that can be reaped from both traditional values and natural resources. Hence it is essential to develop such blessings and thereby benefit the public.
Indicating that the mountain is inclusive manifestation of the society, Anteneh has applauded the relentless contribution and determinations of the residents in the effort to realize the project.
The development project would also be one of the best practices to be scaled up in other mountainous area of the country.
Aklilu Menedo, Chief Administrator of Kembeta Tembaro concurring Ateneh has also added that the Hambercho Tourism and Green Development is the leading among several projects set to be implemented upon ahead.
Commitment and determination of the local people for the realization such a grand inclusive development endeavor is encouraging and potential capacity to intensively develop Mount Hambercho further.
Endashaw Bekele State Culture Tourism and Sport Bureau (CTSB) Tourism Officer told the Ethiopian Herald that the Hambercho Mountain has been developed with the initiative and vision to make the area ecotourism center and thereby to reap multi-faceted advantage from the tourism sector.
The Hambercho which has been identified as one of tourist attracting site in SNNPS kembata Zone remained barren with no or little advantage supposed to be secured for years. Thus, the State and zonal administration along with the Culture and Tourism Bureau took the initiative and set forth to comprehensively develop the mountain.
As to him the mountain is blessed with forests and bio diversity and events practiced by the local community. The project is now realized with the concerted efforts of the local people and those who were born there who have contributed what they have to make the area inclusive ecosystem development.
Previously, the most tourist targeted and preferred sites was limited to the localities of Jinka and Arba minch, said Endashaw being optimistic that the new inclusive eco system development project will believed to have elongate tourists stay and add something worth to job creation and promotion of culture and image building.
More over the project has also envisages environmental protection under going impact and situational analysis upon the bio diversity, the environment and the cultural, spiritual and other local aspects of the inhabitants.
Hardly had Ethiopia taken advantage of natural blessings and variable climatic zones nature has abundantly endowed more than that of the Horn region. The country, apart from the diverse nations with enormity of traditions and cultures, It is also blessed with varied spatial, topography, landscape morphology due to geographic phenomenon.
It is obvious that Ethiopia is a mountainous region and a source of trans-boundary rivers with rapidand falls and habitat of bio- diversity.
As home to various mountains and characterized by higher altitude, Ethiopia is unique in the continent. The country is the only geographical entity which has four seasons unlike the remaining counties of Africa which is attributed to its altitudinal difference.
The long history of Ethiopia witnessed mountains are used as strategically preferred location to control the mobility of an enemy. As a result the incorporation of towns and the construction of churches in mountains places attributed to the desire to control the movement of rebels.
Now the time seemed to have changed, situation forced mankind to exploit and look after nation as existence demands. The issues of development and environment are among supreme agendas of humanity. The inclusive ecosystem development of Hambercho might be a milestone for other efforts.
As to documents, Hambaricho is a mountain located in the Kambata Tambaro Zone in the Southern Peoples Nations Nationalities and Peoples State (SNNPS) of Ethiopia. It is the tallest mountain in the Kambata region, at 3058 m.
Hambaricho has historical, cultural, and spiritual significance for Kambata people. Mount Hambaricho is believed to have been the home of the original seven founding tribes of Kambata, the Hambaricho Lamela (Kambatisa; lit. “Hambaricho’s seven” or the “seven tribes of Hambarcho”). Hambaricho was the historical center of the Kamabata people, from which their original settlements radiated outward and to which all Kamabata have a common bond of connections and a sense of belonging.
Owing to its strategic location, Hambaricho and its mountain chains had served as an administrative seat for Kambata woma, or kings, from ancient times until the last Kambata woma and his advisers were captured during Menelik II’s armies’ invasion and military occupation of Kambata from 1890 to 1893.
The Kambata people used to assemble in Hambaricho annually to celebrate the Masala festival with gifata (patriotic and war songs) and shalla (cultural songs and dances) in the presence of the revered Abba Serecho , who is generally believed to have possessed immense Spiritual gift, spiritual power.
Today, one can get a panoramic view of Hambaricho from Durame, an administrative center of Kambata Tambaro Zone, and from other places in the Zone. The Kambata Tambaro Zone Administration, in a grand scheme designed to make Hambaricho Mountain a tourist destination, had constructed 777 staircases.
The Ethiopian herald December 22/2020
