Bench was one of the 77

woreda Districts of Ethiopia, also called woredas ( am, ወረዳ; ''woreda''), are the third level of the administrative divisions of Ethiopia – after ''zones'' and the '' regional states''. These districts are further subdivided into a number of ...

s in the

Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region The Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (often abbreviated as SNNPR; am, የደቡብ ብሔር ብሔረሰቦችና ሕዝቦች ክልል, Yädäbub Bḥer Bḥeräsäbočna Hzboč Kllə) is a regional state in southwestern ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

. It was named for the Bench people, whose homeland lies in the northern part of the woreda. Part of the

Bench Maji Zone Bench Sheko (previously known as Bench Maji) is a zone in the South West Ethiopia Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Bench Sheko is bordered on the south and southeast by West Omo, on the west by the Gambela Region on the north by Sheka, and on the e ...

, Bench was bordered on the south and east by

Meinit Meinit was one of the 77 woredas in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Bench Maji Zone, Meinit was bordered on the south by Dizi, on the west by Sheko, on the north by Bench, on the east by the Kefi ...

, on the west by Sheko, and on the north by the Keficho Shekicho Zone. Towns in Bench included

Aman Aman may refer to:Poli People First names * Aman Hambleton (born 1992), Canadian chess grandmaster * Aman Hayer (born 1979), Bhangra musician * Aman Verma (actor) (born 1971), Indian actor Surnames * Mohammed Aman (born 1994), Ethiopian mi ...

and

Mizan Teferi Mizan Tefere (also called simply Mizan) is the largest town in South West Ethiopia Peoples' Region and one of four Capital cities of the region. Mizan is also the administrative centre, of the Bench Sheko Zone in the South West Ethiopia Peoples ...

. Bench was divided into

Debub Bench Debub Bench is one of the woredas in the South West Ethiopia Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. It is named for the Bench people. Part of the Bench Maji Zone, Debub Bench is bordered on the south by Meinit Shasha, on the west by Guraferda, on the north ...

, Semien Bench, and She Bench woredas and

Mizan Aman Mizan Tefere (also called simply Mizan) is the largest town in South West Ethiopia Peoples' Region and one of four Capital cities of the region. Mizan is also the administrative centre, of the Bench Sheko Zone in the South West Ethiopia Peoples ...

town; the southern part of Bench was added to

Meinit Goldiya Meinit Goldiya is one of the woredas in the South West Ethiopia Peoples' Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Bench Maji Zone, Meinit Goldiya is bordered on the south by Meinit Shasha, on the west by Debub Bench, on the northwest by She Bench, and on ...

. Rivers in Bench include the Akobo, which has its source in this woreda.

Demographics

Based on figures published by the

Central Statistical Agency The Central Statistical Agency (CSA; Amharic: ማዕከላዊ ስታቲስቲክስ ኤጀንሲ) is an agency of the government of Ethiopia designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that country used to monitor economic and social growt ...

in 2005, this woreda has an estimated total population of 299,151, of whom 150,827 are men and 148,324 women; 25,483 or 8.52% of its population are urban dwellers, which is less than the Zone average of 9.1%. With an estimated area of 2,128.91 square kilometers, Bench has an estimated population density of 140.5 people per square kilometer, which is greater than the Zone average of 20. In the 1994 national census Bench had a population of 208,339, of whom 103,257 were men and 105,082 women; 14,067 or 6.75% of its population were urban dwellers. The five largest ethnic groups reported in this woreda were the Bench (62.21%), the Kafficho (9.42%), the Me'en (8.09%), the Amhara (6.27%), and the

She She most commonly refers to: *She (pronoun), the third person singular, feminine, nominative case pronoun in modern English. She or S.H.E. may also refer to: Literature and films *'' She: A History of Adventure'', an 1887 novel by H. Rider Hagga ...

(5.79%); all other ethnic groups made up 8.22% of the population. Bench was spoken as a first language by 62.49% of the inhabitants, 11.06% spoke Amharic, 8.1% spoke Me'en, 6.93% spoke Kafa, and 5.82% spoke

; the remaining 5.6% spoke all other primary languages reported. Concerning

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

, 19.95% of the population were considered literate; 13.18% of children aged 7–12 were in primary school; 6.08% of the children aged 13–14 were in junior secondary school, and 3.25% of the inhabitants aged 15–18 were in senior secondary school. Concerning sanitary conditions, about 81% of the urban and 22% of the total had toilet facilities.''1994 Population and Housing Census of Ethiopia: Results for Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region'', Vol. 1, part 2
, Tables 6.3, 6.13 (accessed 17 April 2009)

References

{{coord, 6, 55, N, 35, 10, E, display=title, type:adm3rd_region:ET Former districts of the South West Ethiopia Peoples' Region