Part of the Debub Gondar Zone, Lay Gayint is bordered on the south by Tach Gayint and Simada, on the southwest by Misraq Este, on the west by Farta, on the north by Ebenat, and on the east by the Semien Wollo Zone.

The administrative center is Nefas Mewcha; other towns in Lay Guyint include Gobgob and Sali.

[3] Notable figures from this small town include Ambachew Mekonnen who served as the President of the Amhara regional state up until his murder during an attempted coup.

[4] Based on the 2007 national census conducted by the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia (CSA), this woreda has a total population of 206,499, an increase of 23.56% over the 1994 census, of whom 104,401 are men and 102,098 women; 22,825 or 11.05% are urban inhabitants.

The majority of the inhabitants practiced Ethiopian Orthodox Christianity, with 97.47% reporting that as their religion, while 2.47% of the population said they were Muslim.