Chañaral Province () is one of three

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

in the northern

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of Atacama (III). Its capital is the small coastal town of Chañaral.

Geography and demography

According to the 2012 census by the National Statistics Institute (''INE''), the province spans an area of and had a population of 28,874 inhabitants, giving it a population density of . Between the 1992 and 2002 censuses, the population fell by 22.5% (9,319 persons).

Administration

As a

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

, Chañaral is a second-level

administrative division of Chile The administrative division or territorial organization of Chile exemplifies characteristics of a unitary state. State administration is functionally and geographically decentralized, as appropriate for each authority in accordance with the law ...

, which is further divided into two communes (''comunas''): Chañaral and Diego de Almagro. The province is administered by a presidentially appointed provincial delegate. Jorge Fernández Herrera was appointed by

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Gabriel Boric Gabriel Boric Font (; born 11 February 1986) is a Chilean politician and the President of Chile since 2022. He previously served two four-year terms as a deputy in the Chamber of Deputies of Chile, Chamber of Deputies. Boric first gained prom ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chanaral Province Provinces of Atacama Region Provinces of Chile