Egypt's first-level administrative divisions include 27 provinces (Arabic: محافظة). The head of government of a province is the governor and is appointed by the president.
In April 2008, two new provinces were established in Egypt: October 6 and Helwan. In December 2009, the province of Luxor was established, increasing the number of provinces to 29; In April 2011, the provinces of 6 October and Helwan were merged into Giza and Cairo respectively, reducing the number of provinces to 27.
1. Alexandria Province (Arabic: محافظة الإسكندرية), is a province of Egypt located in the northwestern corner of the Nile Delta in the north of the country, bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north. It has an area of 2,300 square kilometers and a population of 4,110,015. The capital is Alexandria. Historically, Alexandria was the capital of Egypt until the establishment of Fustat (which was later incorporated into Cairo). Alexandria is the second largest city in Egypt, Alexandria is the largest port in Egypt, located on the southern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, and the most important seaport in Egypt.
2. Beni Suef Province (Arabic: محافظة بني سويف), is a province of Egypt, located in the north-central part of the country, through which the Nile River flows. The capital is Beni Suef. It has an area of 1,322 square kilometers and a population of 2,290,527.
3. Faiyum Province (Arabic: محافظة الفيوم), is a province of Egypt located in the center of the country. The capital is Faiyum. It has an area of 1,827 square kilometers and a population of 2,512,792.
4. Shaykh Governorate (Arabic: محافظة كفر الشيخ), or Kafra Sheikh Governorate, is one of the Egyptian provinces, located in the northwestern part of the Nile Delta, east of the Rashid branch, and bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north. The capital is the village of Sheikh. It has an area of 3,437 square kilometers and a population of 2,618,111.
5. Minuf Province (Arabic: محافظة المنوفية), or Manufia Province, is one of the twenty-nine provinces of Egypt, located in the southern part of the Nile Delta, with the Nile River flowing to the east and its tributaries to the west. The capital is Hibingkum. It has an area of 1,532 square kilometers and a population of 3,270,404. The birthplace of Sadat and Mubarak in Minuf province.
6. Gerubiyu Province (Arabic: محافظة القليوبية), is a province of Egypt located in the southern part of the Nile Delta, bounded by the Nile River flowing to the west. The capital is Benha. It has an area of 1,532 square kilometers and a population of 3,270,404.
7. Sohaj Province (Arabic: محافظة سوهاج), is one of the provinces of Egypt, located in Upper Egypt, with the Nile River flowing in the middle. The capital is Sohag. It has an area of 1,547 square kilometers and a population of 3,746,378.
8. Aswan Province (Arabic: محافظة أسوان) is one of the first-level administrative divisions of Egypt, located in the south of Egypt, with Aswan as its capital. The province is bounded by Red Sea Province to the east, New Valley Province to the west, Kina Province to the north, and the Republic of Sudan to the south, with an area of 62,726 square kilometers. It has a population of 1,643,211.
9. Cairo Province (Arabic: محافظة القاهرة), is a province of Egypt located in the southeastern corner of the country's Nile Delta. Cairo, the capital, is also the capital of Egypt. Cairo Province covers an area of 3,085 square kilometers and has a population of 10,203,693 people. On 17 April 2008, the province of Helwan was separated from the province and in April 2011 it was merged into the province.
10. The Western Province (Arabic: محافظة الغربية), is one of the twenty-seven provinces of Egypt, located in the middle of the Nile Delta. The capital is Tanta. It has an area of 1,942 square kilometers and a population of 5,066,000. The Western Province is conveniently located between Cairo, the capital, and Alexandria, the largest seaport, with Tanta, the provincial capital, only one to two hours from Cairo and Alexandria. The largest city in the province is the Great Mehale, which is adjacent to the province of Degehriyeh, followed by Tanta. It is also Salah's hometown.
11. Luxor Province (Arabic: محافظة الأقصر) is a province of Egypt located in central Egypt, east of the Nile River. The province, formerly part of the province of Kina, became an independent province on 7 December 2009. The capital is Luxor. It has an area of 2,960 square kilometers and a population of 1,270,058. The coat of arms is Tutankhamun.
12. New Valley Province (Arabic: محافظة الوادي الجديد) is the largest province in Egypt, located in southwestern Egypt with its capital at Kharijah. It is bordered by Libya to the west and the Republic of Sudan to the south. It covers an area of 440,098 square kilometers. It has a population of 203,958. This large province, which covers about one-third of the area, is the largest province in Egypt and one of the largest first-level administrative divisions on the African continent and in the world, slightly larger than Iraq.
13. The province of Kena (Arabic: محافظة قنا) is one of the provinces of Egypt, located in the south of Egypt, with the capital of Keina. The Nile River runs through the province. It has an area of 1,796 square kilometers and a population of 1,092,316. On 7 December 2009, the province of Luxor was separated from the province.
14. South Sinai Province (Arabic: محافظة جنوب سيناء) is a province of Egypt located in the southern half of the Sinai Peninsula in northeastern Egypt, with its capital at Tours. It is bordered by the Gulf of Aqaba to the east and the Gulf of Suez to the west. The province covers an area of 33,140 square kilometers and has a population of 149,335 people.