Cauquenes Province is one of four provinces of the central Chilean region of Maule (VII). The provincial capital is the city of Cauquenes.

Geography and demography

The provincial capital, Cauquenes, lies approximately 370 km southwest of Santiago. According to the 2002 census by the National Statistics Institute (INE), the province spans an area of 3027.2 sqkm and had a population of 57,088 inhabitants (28,356 men and 28,732 women), giving it a population density of 18.9 PD/sqkm. Of these, 38,660 (67.7%) lived in urban areas and 18,428 (32.3%) in rural areas. Between the 1992 and 2002 censuses, the population grew by 3.3% (1,846 persons).

Administration

As a province, Cachapoal is a second-level administrative division of Chile, governed by a provincial governor who is appointed by the president.

Communes

The province is composed of three communes, each governed by a municipality consisting of an alcalde and municipal council: Cauquenes, Chanco and Pelluhue.