Indonesia consists of 33 provinces, five of which have special status. Each province has its own political legislature and governor. The provinces are subdivided into regencies (kabupaten) and cities (kota), which are further subdivided into subdistricts (kecamatan), and again into village groupings (either desa or kelurahan). Following the implementation of regional autonomy measures in 2001, the regencies and cities have become the key administrative units, responsible for providing most government services. The village administration level is the most influential on a citizen's daily life, and handles matters of a village or neighborhood through an elected lurah or kepala desa (village chief).

The provinces of Aceh, Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Papua, and West Papua have greater legislative privileges and a higher degree of autonomy from the central government than the other provinces. The Acehnese government, for example, has the right to create an independent legal system; in 2003, it instituted a form of Sharia (Islamic law). Yogyakarta was granted the status of Special Region in recognition of its pivotal role in supporting Indonesian Republicans during the Indonesian Revolution. Papua, formerly known as Irian Jaya, was granted special autonomy status in 2001. Jakarta is the country's special capital region.

Indonesian provinces and their capitals:

Sumatra

1. Aceh (Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam) - Banda Aceh
2. North Sumatra (Sumatera Utara) - Medan
3. West Sumatra (Sumatera Barat) - Padang
4. Riau - Pekanbaru
5. Riau Islands (Kepulauan Riau) - Tanjung Pinang
6. Jambi - Jambi (city)
7. South Sumatra (Sumatera Selatan) - Palembang
8. Bangka-Belitung (Kepulauan Bangka-Belitung) - Pangkal Pinang
9. Bengkulu - Bengkulu (city)
10. Lampung - Bandar Lampung

Java

11. Jakarta - Jakarta
12. Banten - Serang
13. West Java (Jawa Barat) - Bandung
14. Central Java (Jawa Tengah) - Semarang
15. Yogyakarta Special Region - Yogyakarta (city)
16. East Java (Jawa Timur) - Surabaya

17. Bali - Denpasar
18. West Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Barat) - Mataram
19. East Nusa Tenggara (Nusa Tenggara Timur) - Kupang

20. West Kalimantan (Kalimantan Barat) - Pontianak
21. Central Kalimantan (Kalimantan Tengah) - Palangkaraya
22. South Kalimantan (Kalimantan Selatan) - Banjarmasin
23. East Kalimantan (Kalimantan Timur) - Samarinda

24. North Sulawesi (Sulawesi Utara) - Manado
25. Gorontalo - Gorontalo (city)
26. Central Sulawesi (Sulawesi Tengah) - Palu
27. West Sulawesi (Sulawesi Barat) - Mamuju
28. South Sulawesi (Sulawesi Selatan) - Makassar
29. South East Sulawesi (Sulawesi Tenggara) - Kendari

30. Maluku - Ambon
31. North Maluku (Maluku Utara) - Ternate

32. West Papua (Papua Barat) - Manokwari
33. Papua - Jayapura

Indonesian Provices Map