Regions of Namibia

Namibian Regions
CategoryUnitary state
LocationRepublic of Namibia
Number14
Populations102,762 (Omaheke) – 494,605 (Khomas)
Areas8,650 km2 (3,339 sq mi) (Oshana) – 161,510 km2 (62,361 sq mi) (ǁKaras Region)
Government
Subdivisions

Namibia uses regions as its first-level subnational administrative divisions. Since 2013, it has 14 regions which in turn are subdivided into 121 constituencies.

Upon Namibian independence, the pre-existing subdivisions from the South African administration were taken over. Since then, demarcations and numbers of regions and constituencies of Namibia are tabled by delimitation commissions and accepted or declined by the National Assembly.

In 1992, the 1st Delimitation Commission, chaired by Judge President Johan Strydom, proposed that Namibia should be divided into 13 regions. The suggestion was approved in the lower house, The National Assembly. In 2014, the 4th Delimitation Commission amended the number of regions to fourteen.[1]

The most urbanised and economically active regions are the Khomas and Erongo region, with Khomas home to the capital, Windhoek, and Erongo home to Walvis Bay and Swakopmund.

The table below shows statistics from the 2023 Population and Housing Census:

Region Area (km²) Population People per km2 Average Household Size
Erongo 63,539 240,206 3.8 3.1
Hardap 109,781 106,680 1.0 3.6
Kavango East 23,988 218,421 9.1 5.3
Kavango West 24,591 123,266 5.0 5.5
Khomas 36,964 494,605 13.4 3.6
Kunene 115,260 120,762 1.0 3.8
Ohangwena 10,706 337,729 31.5 4.8
Omaheke 84,981 102,881 1.2 3.3
Omusati 26,551 316,671 11.9 4.2
Oshana 8,647 230,801 26.7 3.7
Oshikoto 38,685 257,302 6.7 4.1
Otjozondjupa 105,460 220,811 2.1 3.6
Zambezi 14,785 142,373 9.7 3.7
ǁKaras 161,514 109,893 0.7 3.1
  1. ^ Immanuel, Shinovene (12 April 2012). "Caprivi is no more". The Namibian.