Wele-Nzas

Wele-nzas (Spanish: Wele Nsas or Welensas) is a province in the eastern portion of continental Equatorial Guinea. Its capital is Mongomo. It borders the Equatoguinean provinces of Centro Sur to the west and Kie-ntem to the north, with Gabon's Woleu-Ntem Province to the east and south. As of 2015, the population of Wele-nzas was 192,017. It derives its name from the Benito River (also called the Wele) and the Piedra Nzas mountain range. The earliest settlers of Wele-Nzas, and the only inhabitants of the region for nearly 15,000 years, were the Gyele (Byele) peoples. Bantu migration ultimately displaced the Gyele, and during the 20th century the last of the Gyele migrated to Cameroon. The Fang people ultimately became the predominant ethnic group in the province. As European explorers mostly avoided the interior of Equatorial Guinea, there are few accounts of the region in early European histories; even the Spanish governors of the region did not visit Wele-Nzas until the official formation of Spanish Guinea in 1926. Wele-Nzas has played an important role in post-independence Equatoguinean history as the home province of both of the country's presidents, Francisco Macías Nguema and Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo.