On Monday, a referendum to create a new regional state will be held in southern Ethiopia, where millions of voters will participate.

In the previous four years, there have been three of these referendums staged, all in the south of the nation.

In previous elections, the Sidama and South-Western Ethiopia areas were created.

The Southern Ethiopian Nations, Nationalities and People's (SNNP) area includes five districts and six sub-regional administrative units (zones), and more over three million people are registered to vote.

If the new region is approved, it will be known as Southern Ethiopia region.