West Halmahera Regency () is a regency (on Halmahera Island) in North Maluku Province of Indonesia. The regency was created on 25 February 2003 from the western districts of the former North Maluku Regency, and is now bounded by North Halmahera Regency to the north and east, while to the south it borders both East Halmahera Regency and that portion of the city of Tidore on the mainland of Halmahera. It covers an area of 2,239.11 km2, and it had a population of 100,424 people at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 132,349 at the 2020 Census;Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. the official estimate as of mid-2025 was 141,056 (comprising 72,309 males and 68,747 females).Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 27 February 2026, Kabupaten Halmahera Barat Dalam Angka 2026 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.8201) The capital lies at Jailolo (town).
Administration At the time of the 2020 Census the regency was divided into eight districts (kecamatan), but a ninth district - Loloda Tengah - has subsequently been created from the northern part of Loloda District. The districts are tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 CensusBiro Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2011. and 2020 Census,Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 2021. together with the official estimates as of mid-2025.Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 27 February 2026, Kabupaten Halmahera Barat Dalam Angka 2026 (Katalog-BPS 1102001.8201) The table also includes the locations of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages (all classed as rural desa) in each district, and their postal codes.
Kode Wilayah Name ofDistrict(kecamatan) Englishname Area in km2 Pop'nCensus2010 Pop'nCensus2020 Pop'nEstimatemid 2025 Admin centre No. of villages Post codes 82.01.05 Jailolo Selatan (a) South Jailolo 221.0114,14424,40925,265Domato2297751 82.01.01 Jailolo (North)Jailolo 305.6027,54134,75738,145Acango3497752 82.01.04 Sahu (West)Sahu 125.879,22311,84212,706Susupu1997753 82.01.09 Sahu Timur East Sahu 266.298,01511,06611,696Akelamo1897758 82.01.08 Ibu Selatan South Ibu 375.3810,33515,00415,849Talaga1697756 82.01.03 Ibu (Central)Ibu 114.629,35112,28013,158Tongute Sungi1797754 82.01.07 Tabaru North Ibu 207.977,7739,33510,249Duono1697757 82.01.02 Loloda (b) (South)Loloda 359.0210,62613,6569,262Kedi2797755 82.01.10 Loloda Tengah (b) CentralLoloda 177.28(c)(c)4,730Barataku(c)97755 Totals 2,239.11100,424132,349141,056 Jailolo169
Notes: (a) including 37 offshore islands. (b) including 80 offshore islands in Loloda and Loloda Tengah Districts together. The largest islands are Nusa Kahatola (west of Kedi village) and Sidua . (c) included in the figure for Loloda District, of which it was formerly a part.
Demography Most inhabitants speak languages of the North Halmahera language family, including (from south to north) the Sahu, Waioli, Gamkonora and Ibu languages, and the less closely related Lolodarese in the north, who are more ethno-linguistically aligned with the Loloda and Galela groups in North Halmahera Regency.
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