According to the Atlas of the Ethiopian Rural Economy published by the Central Statistical Agency (CSA), around 10% of the woreda is forest.
[2] Along with Akobo, Jikaw becomes flooded during the rainy season, requiring the people to migrate to the highlands with their cattle until the waters recede; thus raising livestock is the primary source of income in this woreda.
On 14–15 April 2006 members of the Murle attacked the Pal Buol (also called the Lare) in Jikaw, and 16 people were killed and 9 wounded.
[5] Based on the 2007 Census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), this woreda has a total population of 35,556, of whom 19,134 are men and 16,422 women; with an area of 1,081.04 square kilometers, Jikaw has a population density of 32.89, which is greater than the Zone average of 23.79 persons per square kilometer.
The majority of the inhabitants said they were Protestant, with 56.25% of the population reporting they held that belief, while 19.04% practiced traditional religions, and 4.37% professed Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity.