A microregion (Portuguese: Microrregião) was a legally defined area in Brazil consisting of a group of municipalities. They were abolished in 2017 and replaced by Intermediate and Immediate Geographic Regions.[1] Microregions were grouped together into mesoregions. In theory, Brazilian law provided for member municipalities to cooperate on matters of common interest, but in practice, the divisions were used primarily for statistical purposes by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics.[citation needed]
In 2014, there were 5,570 municipalities, divided among 558 microregions and 137 mesoregions:[2]
| State | Mesoregions | Microregions | Municipalities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Central-West Brazil | 15 | 52 | 466 |
| Federal District | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Goiás | 5 | 18 | 246 |
| Mato Grosso | 5 | 22 | 141 |
| Mato Grosso do Sul | 4 | 11 | 79 |
| Northeast Brazil | 42 | 188 | 1794 |
| Alagoas | 3 | 13 | 102 |
| Bahia | 7 | 32 | 417 |
| Ceará | 7 | 33 | 184 |
| Maranhão | 5 | 21 | 217 |
| Paraíba | 4 | 23 | 223 |
| Pernambuco | 5 | 19 | 185 |
| Piauí | 4 | 15 | 224 |
| Rio Grande do Norte | 4 | 19 | 167 |
| Sergipe | 3 | 13 | 75 |
| North Brazil | 20 | 64 | 450 |
| Acre | 2 | 5 | 22 |
| Amapá | 2 | 4 | 16 |
| Amazonas | 4 | 13 | 62 |
| Pará | 6 | 22 | 144 |
| Rondônia | 2 | 8 | 52 |
| Roraima | 2 | 4 | 15 |
| Tocantins | 2 | 8 | 139 |
| Southeast Brazil | 37 | 160 | 1668 |
| Espírito Santo | 4 | 13 | 78 |
| Minas Gerais | 12 | 66 | 853 |
| Rio de Janeiro | 6 | 18 | 92 |
| São Paulo | 15 | 63 | 645 |
| South Brazil | 23 | 94 | 1191 |
| Paraná | 10 | 39 | 399 |
| Rio Grande do Sul | 7 | 35 | 497 |
| Santa Catarina | 6 | 20 | 295 |
| Total | 136 | 557 | 5569 |
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