El Beni Department
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Beni El Beni |
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| Department | |||
Llanos (plains) of Beni
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| Motto: ¡Ventura, paz y unión! ("Venture, peace and union!") |
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| Anthem: Canta victorioso pueblo de leyenda | |||
 Beni within Bolivia |
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| Created | November 18, 1842 | ||
| Founded by | José Ballivián | ||
| Capital | La Santísima Trinidad | ||
| Government | |||
| • Body | Departmental Legislative Assembly | ||
| • Governor | Alex Ferrier Abidar (MAS Party) | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 213,564 km2 (82,458 sq mi) | ||
| Area rank | Place nº 2 (19.44%) | ||
| Elevation(average) | 155 m (509 ft) | ||
| Population (2012 census) | |||
| • Total | 421,196 | ||
| • Rank | Place nº 8 (4.48%) | ||
| • Density | 2.0/km2 (5.1/sq mi) | ||
| Languages | |||
| • Official | Spanish, Moxeno | ||
| Time zone | Bolivia Time (UTC-4) | ||
| Area code(s) | + (591) 3 | ||
| ISO 3166 code | ISO 3166-2:BO | ||
| Vehicle registration | BO-B | ||
Beni, sometimes El Beni, is a northeastern department of Bolivia, in the lowlands region of the country. It is the second largest department in the country (after Santa Cruz), covering 213,564 square kilometers (82,458 sq mi), and it was created by supreme decree on November 18, 1842 during the administration of General José Ballivián. Its capital is Trinidad.
With a population of 420,000 (2006 census), Beni is the second most sparsely populated of the nine departments of Bolivia, after Pando.
Although Beni is rich in natural resources, the poverty level of its inhabitants is high, mainly as a result of centuries of exploitation of native populations by white elites. The main economic activities are agriculture, timber and cattle. In addition, an underground economy linked to illegal narcotics activities flourished in the area during the last decades of the 20th century, with many cocaine laboratories hiding behind the façade of remote cattle ranches.
The Beni region features many large mounds connected by earthen causeways which were built by ancient inhabitants. The first European settlers were Spanish Jesuits sent to convert the native inhabitants, chiefly in the southern half of the department, during the 18th century. The religious origins of many of the Beni's towns can be attested to by the centrality of the local church in most of the communities, and in the very names of the towns: Trinidad, Santa Ana, San Borja, Reyes, etc. Today, the Beni region is the seat of the Roman Catholic Apostolic Vicariate of El Beni.
The importance of cattle ranching is prominent in the regional culture, and cowboys, or "Vaqueros", still play an important role in Beni society, comprising a large portion of the working class. Other industries significant to the region include logging, small-scale fishing and hunting, farming, and in recent years, eco-tourism.
Though the Beni lies in the southern reaches of the Amazon Basin, an area renowned for tropical disease, the population experiences less health problems than in the Andes Region, especially those related to malnutrition.
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Wikipedia