The valley is populated by several upland villages; these are Lata, Omarishara, Shkhara and Zemo Azhara. Administratively, it was de facto and de jure a part of Upper Abkhazia (prior to August 2008), but the Republic of Abkhazia claims it as part of the Gulripsh district. According to the last Georgian census (2002), the population of the former Georgian-controlled part of the valley was 1,956, of which were 1,912 ethnic Georgians (Svans).