It is the largest town in the province of Highland Papua, located in the Baliem Valley and had a population of 64,967 in the 2020 Census;[2] the official estimate in mid 2023 was 66,080.

As far as the outside world was concerned, the discovery of the Baliem Valley, where Wamena is located, and the unexpected presence of its large agricultural population was made by Richard Archbold’s third zoological expedition to New Guinea in 1938.

[6][7] During the 2019 Papua protests, several government buildings were destroyed by an angry mob, after which the police and the military retaliated, leaving 16 civilians killed and 65 injured.

A Kompas correspondent in Wamena reported that gunshots sounded across the city and that civilians primarily migrants were taking shelter in police stations, military bases,[8] local Papuan homes, and churches.

[10] Later independence investigation by The Jakarta Post and local media Tabloid Jubi, revealed civilian victims were likely to be higher than official counts.

[14] Wamena features a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af), albeit a relatively mild version due to its high altitude.

The largely Papuan town is densely settled and has extreme rates of HIV infection, with a claim of 5,100 cases recorded by Antara.