Administrative divisions of Myanmar

Myanmar is divided into 21 administrative divisions, which include seven regions, seven states, one union territory, one self-administered division, and five self-administered zones.

Table

Following is the table of government subdivisions and its organizational structure based on different regions, states, the union territory, the self-administered division, and the self-administered zones:

Administrative division	Burmese name		No.
Region	tuing:desa.kri:	taìñ deithác̱ì	7
State	pranynai	pyine	7
Union Territory	pranytaungcu.nai-mre	pyiṯauñs̱únemyei	1
Self-Administered Division	kuiypuing-uphkyuphkwang.ra.tuing:	koup̱aiñ ouʔhcouʔ hkwíñyá taìñ	1
Self-Administered Zone	kuiypuing-uphkyuphkwang.ra.desa.	koup̱aiñ ouʔhcouʔ hkwíñyá deithá	5

The regions were called divisions prior to August 2010, and four of them are named after their capital city, the exceptions being Sagaing Region, Ayeyarwady Region and Tanintharyi Region. The regions can be described as ethnically predominantly Burman (Bamar), while the states, the zones and Wa Division are dominated by ethnic minorities.

Yangon Region has the largest population and is the most densely populated. The smallest population is Kayah State. In terms of land area, Shan State is the largest and Naypyidaw Union Territory is the smallest.

Regions and states are divided into districts (; kha yaing or khayaing, ). These districts consist of townships (; myo-ne, ) that include towns (; myo, ), wards (; yatkwet, )) and village tracts (; kyayywa oksu, ). Village tracts are groups of adjacent villages (; kyayywa, ).

The self-administered division (SAD) exists at an administrative level half-a-step below that of states, regions and the union territory, and the self-administrative zones (SAZ) exists at the district level. The self-administered areas were formed by statutes on territory controlled by Myanmar's ethnic armed organisations.

Structural hierarchy

Level	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
Division Type	Region () State ()	Self-Administered Zone ()	Township ()	Town ()	Ward ()
		District ()		Village tract ()	Village ()
	Union Territory (ပြည်တောင်စုနယ်မြေ)
	Self-Administered DivisionTemplate:Efn ()

Within the hierarchy, the most significant unit of local governance below the first level is the township which form the a consistent set of administrative units across the country. Often, local governance will go directly from the township to the ward. Most of the country do not have separate town offices. For example, in 2015, only 7 of the 27 townships of Ayeyarwady Region had a town office at all.

Additionally, some townships are divided into Subtownships (), which are semi-official parts of a township administered separately, often revolving around a town separate from the township's principal town. Many reports will use subtownships, especially more established subtownships used by the main townships themselves.

Administrative divisions

Regions, States, and Union Territory

Flag	Name	Burmese	Capital	ISO	Region	Pop. (2014)	Area (km2)	Density (per km2)
File:Flag of Ayeyarwady Region.svg	Ayeyarwady Region		Pathein	MM-07	Lower	6,184,829	35,031.8	176.6
File:Flag of Bago Region.png	Bago Region		Bago	MM-02	Lower	4,867,373	39,402.3	123.5
File:Flag of Chin State.svg	Chin State		Hakha	MM-14	Upper	478,801	36,018.8	13.3
File:Flag of Kachin State.svg	Kachin State		Myitkyina	MM-11	Upper	1,689,441	89,041.8	19.0
File:Flag of Kayah State.svg	Kayah State		Loikaw	MM-12	Upper	286,627	11,731.5	24.4
File:Flag of Kayin State.svg	Kayin State		Hpa-an	MM-13	Lower	1,574,079	30,383	51.8
File:Flag of Magway Region.svg	Magway Region		Magwe	MM-03	Upper	3,917,055	44,820.6	87.4
File:Flag of Mandalay Region.svg	Mandalay Region		Mandalay	MM-04	Upper	6,165,723	37,945.6	162.5
File:Flag of Mon State (2018).svg	Mon State		Mawlamyine	MM-15	Lower	2,054,393	12,296.6	167.1
File:Flag of Naypyidaw Union Territory.svg	Naypyidaw Union Territory		Naypyidaw	MM-18	Upper	1,160,242	7,054	164.5
File:Flag of Rakhine.svg	Rakhine State		Sittwe	MM-16	Lower	3,188,807	36,778.0	86.7
File:Flag of Sagaing Region (2019).svg	Sagaing Region		Monywa	MM-01	Upper	5,325,347	93,704.8	56.8
File:Flag of Shan State.svg	Shan State		Taunggyi	MM-17	Upper	5,824,432	155,801.3	37.4
File:Flag of Tanintharyi Region.svg	Tanintharyi Region		Dawei	MM-05	Lower	1,408,401	44,344.9	31.8
File:Flag of Yangon Region.svg	Yangon Region		Yangon	MM-06	Lower	7,360,703	10,276.7	716.2

Self-Administered Division and Self-Administered Zones

File:SAZs & SAD of Burma.png

Self-Administered Division and Self-Administered Zones

Flag	Name	Burmese	Capital	State	Population
File:Flag of the Danu people.svg	Danu Self-Administered Zone		Pindaya	Shan State	161,835
File:Flag of Kokang Self-Administered Zone.svg	Kokang Self-Administered Zone		Laukkai	Shan State	123,733
File:Flag of Naga Self-Administered Zone.png	Naga Self-Administered Zone		Lahe	Sagaing Region	116,828
File:Flag of the Palaung people.svg	Pa Laung Self-Administered Zone		Namhsan	Shan State	110,805
File:Pa-o nationality flag.svg	Pa'O Self-Administered Zone		Hopong	Shan State	380,427
File:Flag of Wa State.svg	Wa Self-Administered Division		Hopang	Shan State	558,000

System of administration

File:Myanmar states location.svg

  States of Myanmar

  Regions of Myanmar

The administrative structure of the states, regions and self-administering bodies is outlined in the new constitution adopted in 2008.

Regions and States

Executive authority is held in each state or region by a Regional or State Government consisting of a Chief Minister, other ministers and an Advocate General. The President appoints the Chief Minister from a list of qualified candidates in the regional or state legislature; the regional or state legislature must approve the President's choice unless they can prove that he or she does not meet the constitutional qualifications.

Legislative authority resides with the State Hluttaw or Regional Hluttaw made up of elected civilian members and representatives of the Armed Forces. Both divisions are considered equivalent, the only distinction being that states have large ethnic minority populations and regions are mostly populated by the national majority Burmans / Bamar.

Naypyidaw Union Territory

The constitution states that Naypyidaw shall be a Union Territory under the direct administration of the President. Day-to-day functions would be carried out on the President's behalf by the Naypyidaw Council led by a Chairperson. The Chairperson and members of the Naypyidaw Council are appointed by the President and shall include civilians and representatives of the Armed Forces.

Self-Administered Division and Self-Administered Zones

Self-Administered Zones and Self-Administered Divisions are administered by a Leading Body. The Leading Body consists of at least ten members and includes State or Regional Hluttaw members elected from the Zones or Divisions and other members nominated by the Armed Forces. The Leading Body has both executive and legislative powers. A Chairperson is head of each Leading Body.

Within Sagaing Region:

• Naga (Leshi, Lahe, and Namyun townships)

Within Shan State:

• Danu Self-Administered Zone (Ywangan and Pindaya townships),
• Kokang Self-Administered Zone (Konkyan and Laukkai townships)
• Pa Laung Self-Administered Zone (Namshan and Manton townships)
• Pa'O Self-Administered Zone (Hopong, Hshihseng, and Pinlaung townships),
• Wa Self-Administered Division (Hopang, Mongmao, Panwai, Pangsang, Naphan, and Metman townships)

Districts and Townships

File:Myanmar districts Map (current).svg

Districts of Myanmar as of 2022

Districts are the second-order divisions of Myanmar and are often named after a population center within the district of the same name. Shan State has the most districts, even excluding Self-Administered Zones and Divisions. Naypyidaw Union Territory, Tanintharyi and Mon State have the least with just 4 districts. The District's role is more supervisory as the 330 townships are the basic administrative unit of local governance and are the only type of administrative division that covers the entirety of Myanmar. A District is led by a District Administrator and a Township is administered by a Township Administrator. Both are appointed civil servants through the General Administration Department (GAD) of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MOHA). The Minister of Home Affairs is to be appointed by the military according to the 2008 constitution. The 2008 Constitution of Myanmar defined 75 districts. In April 2022, 46 additional districts were formed by MOHA bringing the total up to 121 districts.

Most local governance services are offered at the Township level; few services are offered at the District level. The Township Administrator is the key focal point for most interactions with the government and the Township Administrator serves as a representative of the State or Region government and executes functions on behalf of the State or Region. All Township governments are staffed by 34 GAD civil servants regardless of population, although larger townships may have several Township committees that coordinate with the Township and report to the District. Subtownships exist for many but not all townships. They can be created for many reasons including, townships with large areas, townships with a large natural barrier or townships with a lopsided population distribution. These subtownships are unofficial, but can be used by the Township administration and national ministries for data collection and administrative ease.

Wards, Village Tracts and Municipalities

The lowest level of practical administration is the ward for urban areas and village for rural areas. Villages are grouped into and administered as village tracts. Village Tracts may contain up to 8 distinct villages. Some townships include areas not part of any ward or village tract. Most townships contain at least one ward/town, and are usually named after the population center. As of reforms in 2012 and 2013, Ward and Village Tract administrators are now typically elected, but report to the appointed Township Administrator. Ward Administrators and Village Tract Administrators (also called just Village Administrators) are supported by 100-household-heads and 10-household-heads who are collectively called area leaders.

Most cities in Myanmar are contained within one township like Pathein. In some cases, the rural portions of the township may be administered semi-independently as sub-townships. In Mandalay, the municipality was functionally administered at the Mandalay District level with townships acting de facto as subdivisions of a city prior to 2022. In Yangon, the administrative jurisdiction of the Yangon City Development Committee overlap across 33 townships and all 4 of Yangon Region's pre-2022 districts. The definition of a city is ambiguous with the Burmese term ('myo') being translated as any urban area. The General Administration Department only explicitly defines the three cities of Yangon, Mandalay and Naypyidaw.

History

Below is a summary of how Myanmar's first-level administrative divisions have evolved:

1948 Constitution	1974 Constitution	2008 Constitution
Kachin State	Kachin State	Kachin State
Karenni State	Karenni State	Kayah State
Shan State	Shan State	Shan State
Karen State	Karen State	Kayin State
Special Division of the Chins	Chin State	Chin State
Upper half of Tenasserim Division	Mon State	Mon State
Arakan Division	Arakan State	Rakhine State

British colonisation

In 1900, Burma was a province of British India, and was divided into two subdivisions: Lower Burma, whose capital was Rangoon with four divisions (Arakan, Irrawaddy, Pegu, Tenasserim), and Upper Burma, whose capital was Mandalay with six divisions (Meiktila, Minbu, Sagaing, North Federated Shan States and South Federated Shan States).

On 10 October 1922, the Karenni States of Bawlake, Kantarawaddy, and Kyebogyi became a part of the Federated Shan States. In 1940, Minbu division's name was changed to Magwe, and Meiktila Divisions became part of Mandalay District.

Post-independence

Upon independence, on 4 January 1948, the Chin Hills area was split from Arakan Division to form Chin Special Division, and Kachin State was formed by carving out the Myitkyina and Bhamo districts of Mandalay Division. Karen State was also created from Amherst, Thaton, and Toungoo Districts of Tenasserim Division. Mongpai State of the Federated Shan States was separated to form Karenni State, and Shan State was formed by merging the other Federated Shan States and the Wa States.

In 1952, Karenni State was renamed Kayah State. In 1964, Rangoon Division was separated from Pegu Division, whose capital shifted to Pegu. In addition, Karen State was renamed Kawthoolei State.

In 1972, the Hanthawaddy and Hmawbi districts were moved under Rangoon Division's jurisdiction.

In 1974, after Ne Win introduced a constitution, Chin Special Division became a state, and its capital moved from Falam to Hakha. Kawthoolei State's name was reverted to Karen State. Mon State was created out of portions of Tenasserim Division and Pegu Division. Mon State's capital became Moulmein, and Tenasserim Division's became Tavoy. In addition, Arakan Division was granted statehood.

In 1989, after the coup d'état by the military junta, the names of many divisions in Burma were altered in English to reflect Burmese pronunciations.

After 1995, in Kachin State Mohnyin District was created out of Myitkyina District as part of the peace agreement with the Kachin Independence Army.

2008 Constitution

The 2008 Constitution stipulates the renaming of the 7 "divisions" ( in Burmese) as "regions" ( in Burmese). It also stipulates the creation of Union territories, which include the capital of Nay Pyi Taw and ethnic self-administered zones ( in Burmese) and self-administered divisions ( in Burmese). These self-administered regions include the following:

• Danu Self-Administered Zone: consisting of Ywangan and Pindaya townships in Shan State
• Kokang Self-Administered Zone: consisting of Konkyan and Laukkai townships in Shan State
• Naga Self-Administered Zone: consisting of Leshi, Lahe, and Namyun townships in Sagaing Region
• Pa Laung Self-Administered Zone: consisting of Namhsan and Manton townships in Shan State
• Pa-O Self-Administered Zone: consisting of Hopong, Hsihseng, and Pinlaung townships in Shan State
• Wa Self-Administered Division: consisting of Hopang, Mongmao, Panwai, Nahpan, Metman, and Pangsang (Pankham) townships in Shan State

On 20 August 2010, the renaming of the 7 divisions and the naming of the 6 self-administered zones was announced by Burmese state media.

See also

• List of administrative divisions of Myanmar by Human Development Index
• Districts of Myanmar
• List of cities and largest towns in Myanmar
• State and Region Government of Myanmar
• List of Burmese flags
• ISO 3166-2:MM

External links

• Statoids