4.1 Urban Economy and Role of the Town

 The town serves as Zonal Administration, Commercial and Tourism Center. There are 32 manufacturing, four fuel stations and six garages in the town. There are eight banks and five micro financial institutions giving financial services in the town. Economic activity rate for both sexes was 42.4% while unemployment rate was 17.4%.

The average annual revenue of the municipality within the 2009-2011 years was Birr and the major sources of revenue were different tax, rent and service charges. The major investment opportunities in the town are: Agro industry, trade, hotel, education and health.

Asela has economic linkages with the surrounding areas, towns, region and Addis Ababa. The town gets grain products, livestock supply, natural resources (fuel wood, charcoal) and surplus labor from surrounding areas. Agricultural inputs brought from Adama, manufacturing and commercial products and some construction materials from Addis Ababa, Adama and the town itself. The financial institutions found in the town have key role in economic linkages.

4.2 Social Services

Social services

Education

There are seven government and 28 private kindergartens; eight government and 37 private primary schools; eight private and 11 government junior secondary schools; two government and 2 private senior secondary schools, one preparatory; one TVET; one government and five private colleges in Asela town.

Health

Regarding health services, there are one government, one private hospital, two health centers, one health post, fifteen private and eight government clinic, five private and two government pharmacies in the town.

Municipal services

Asela town has an abattoir giving slaughtering service for Muslim and Christians; a general market meeting three times per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, a cattle market meeting twice a week on Tuesday and Saturday and two daily markets. In addition; there is public library and Ambulance owned by Red Cross. The town’s solid waste is collected using two dump trucks, four hand drawn carts and disposed in open dump. One micro and Small Enterprises with eight members are engaged in solid waste collection. Liquid waste is collected using two vacuum trucks while three public toilets are available in the town. There is a green area covering 39.55 hectare and street trees are also planted along 18Km road.

Recreation and related function including a park, one stadium, one playground and one water body exists in the town. In addition, there are five standard hotel and fourty seven semi standard hotels in the town. There are nine churches for Orthodox Christians, fourteen churches for Protestants and three mosques for Muslims in the town.