Country Mozambique Area 5,739 km² | Capital Gondola Province Manica Province | |
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Gondola District is a district of Manica Province in western Mozambique. The principal town is Gondola. The district is located in the east of the province, and borders with Macossa District in the north, Gorongosa District of Sofala Province in the northeasteast, Nhamatanda District of Sofala Province in the east, Buzi District of Sofala Province in the southeast, Sussundenga District in the south, Manica District in the west, and with Báruè District in the northwest. The area of the district is 5,739 square kilometres (2,216 sq mi). It has a population of 262,412 as of 2007.
Contents
- Map of Gondola Mozambique
- Geography
- History
- Demographics
- Administrative divisions
- Economy
- Agriculture
- Transportation
- References
Map of Gondola, Mozambique
Geography
The two main rivers in the district are the Pungwe River, which makes the border with Macossa District, and the Revué River.
The climate of the district varies with altitude. The lowlands are characterized by relatively low rainfall, between 800 millimetres (31 in) and 1,100 millimetres (43 in). The transition zone has the average rainfall 1,200 millimetres (47 in), and in higher altitude plains it varies between 1,000 millimetres (39 in) and 1,500 millimetres (59 in).
History
The settlement of Gondola was developed as a station on a railroad connecting Beira and Salisbury.
Demographics
As of 2005, 46% of the population of the district was younger than 15 years. 44% did speak Portuguese. The most common mothertongue is Chitwe language. 63% were analphabetic, mostly women.
Administrative divisions
The district is divided into seven postos, Gondola (one locality), Inchope (three localities), Cafumbe (three localities), Amatongas (three localities), Zembe (two localities), Macate (four localities), and Matsinho (two localities).
Economy
2% of the households in the district have access to electricity.
Agriculture
In the district, there are 39,000 farms which have on average 1.5 hectares (0.0058 sq mi) of land. The main agricultural products are corn, cassava, cowpea, peanut, sorghum, sweet potato, and rice.
Transportation
There is a road network in the district which includes 130 kilometres (81 mi) of paved roads and 255 kilometres (158 mi) of unpaved roads. In particular, the national road EN1 (paved) crosses the district north to south, and the national road EN6 (unpaved) connects the coast with Zimbabwe. In 2005, 124 kilometres (77 mi) of roads were closed because of minefields.
A railroad connecing Beira with Machipanda and Zimbabwe crosses the district.