ruled Ethiopia from 1974, some 250,000 drought- and famine-stricken peasants from the highlands—mostly Amharas from Wollo province—were relocated to Benishangul-Gumuz from 1979 and especially in the mid-1980s. Resistance to the Mengistu regime here came mainly from the Berta. In addition, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF) - supported by the Eritrean People's Liberation Front, which in the meantime had advanced far south from Eritrea - also fought for the area in the Ethiopian civil war in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The OLF tried to incorporate the local population as "black Oromo", but met with little support. The Berta rebels instead allied with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), which overthrew the Mengistu regime in 1991 with the coalition EPRDF. As the Berta People's Liberation Movement or Benishangul People's Liberation Movement (BPLM), they - like the Gambella People's Liberation Movement of the Anuak in Gambella - were not accepted as full members of the EPRDF, but became regional partners of the new ruling coalition. In 2019, the Metekel conflict began. In December 2019, about 200 people were killed in the Metekel massacre. Agriculture The CSA of Ethiopia estimated in 2005 that farmers in Benishangul-Gumuz had a total of 307,820 head of cattle (representing 0.79% of Ethiopia's total cattle), 65,800 sheep (0.38%), 244,570 goats (1.88%), 1,770 mules (1.2%), 37,520 asses (1.5%), 732,270 poultry of all species (2.37%), and 166,130 beehives (3.82%). Over 60% of this region is covered with forest, including bamboo, eucalyptus and rubber trees, incense and gum forests as well as the indigenous species. However, due to increased population which has led to the widespread destruction of the canopy, authorities announced a campaign on 8 June 2007 to plant 1.5 million seedlings over the next two months to replenish this resource. Chief Administrator of the Region (This list is based on information from Worldstatesmen.org, John Young, and the Ethiopian News Agency website) Administrative zones Like other regions in Ethiopia, Benishangul-Gumuz is subdivided into administrative zones. Asosa Kamashi Metekel See also List of districts in the Benishangul-Gumuz region Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam Notes External links Map of Benishangul-Gumuz Region at UN-OCHA Map of Benishangul-Gumuz Region at DPPA of Ethiopia House of Federation Official Ethiopian Government List of Members Ethiopian Highlands Regions of Ethiopia States and territories established in 1992