Man-made risk factors for leishmaniasis are increasing while knowledge of risk factors,rnaccurate diagnosis and treatment of leishmaniasis is poor. As a result, deadly epidemics ofrnleishmaniasis occur periodically, but tools for prediction and prevention are lacking. Hence,rnresearch is needed to address these constraints. Leishmaniasis in Ethiopia is mainly due tornL. donovani and L. aethiopica, which causes visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis respectively.rnAlthough the exact magnitude of the problem is not known, several surveys have indicated thernimportance of the diseases as a public health problem. A complete mapping of the diseasesrnremains to be accomplished in view of the increasing number of patients reporting fromrnregions hitherto unknown to be endemic.rnTherefore, the main aim of this work is to describe the epidemiology of the disease throughrnidentification of the causative agent using molecular epidemiological tools in Silti Woreda. Thernstudy was conducted in two Phases: in phase I, house-to-house survey was conducted and inrnphase II, parasitological identification was done. The treatment response of L. aethiopica tornliquid nitrogen (cryotherapy) and pentostam was documented as follow up activity. Thernprevalence of the disease in the area was found to be 4.82% with highest prevalence among agerngroup 10-20 years. Some plants like Adathoda shimperina and Acacia spp. and hyraxes andrndomestic animals were associated with increased risk of cutaneous leishmaniasis. The solerncausative agent identified was L. aethiopica. The disease was found to be recently introducedrnin the area. In conclusion, the importance of the risk factors identified in this study should berninvestigated further and molecular epidemiological studies should be conducted in other areasrnto map the exact magnitude of the disease in the country. The clinical service in the outbreakrnsite (Silti) needs to be prepared to provide the required care and treatment of patients who willrnkeep coming from the area. Leishmaniasis control program has to be initiated in Ethiopia so asrnto prevent the disease from expanding.rnKeywords/Phrases: Cutaneous leishmaniasis, Risk-factor, Molecular epidemiology,rnPrevalence, Treatment, L. aethiopica.