Administrative divisions of Laos
Laos is divided into 17 provinces (khoueng) and one prefecture (nakhon louang) which includes the capital city Vientiane (Nakhon Louang Viangchan).Provinces are further divided into districts (muang) and then villages (ban).An 'urban' village is essentially a town.[1] Officially, Laos is divided into 3 administrative tiers, with different types of administrative unit on each tier: Each Laotian province is subdivided into districts (muang) and then subdivided into villages (baan).