A study of the determinants of uti li zation ofrncommunity health agents among rural c omm unities wasrnconducted in the di stri ct (Awraj a) of Buno-Bede 11 e, southrnwestern part of Ethiopia. The main objectives of the studyrnwere to determine the prevalence of utilization of CHAs andrnto see the relation between utilization of CHAs andrnknowledge, attitude and participation of the community.rnThere were a total of 311 CHAs trained in the Awraja,rnup to May 1988. Only 221 were found during a surveyrnconducted in May 1988. 80 PAs were randomly selected fromrnthose where a CHA had been found regard 1 ess ofrnfunctionality. A structured questionnaire was administeredrnto a systematic sampling of 2400 heads of households.rnIt was found that 83.6% of the study popu 1 at i on usedrnat least one service of the CHA i n the past year. The mostrnused services were preventive and promotive activities,rnparticularly , health education and home visits (59.7% and 58.0%rnrespecti ' ely). The least used services were treatment activities,rndeath and birth registration. Utilizers of CHA services hadrnbetter access to safe water supply and sanitary facilities.rnPeople who are members of PPCAs, literate, have knowledge aboutrnCHAs and their serv ices, have a positive attitude towardsrnCHAs and their se rvices, and participated in the selectionrnof their CHAs and related matters are more likely to bernutilizers of CHAs. It was also found that a positivernattitude towards CHAs and their services was the bestrnpredictor of utilization of CHAs.rnv