In the law passed by the national assembly in 1994, three such entity levels were defined: region (faritra), department (departemanta) and commune (kaominina).
With Didier Ratsiraka back in power, the constitution was changed in 1998, to include and specifically mention six autonomous provinces, divided into undefined regions and communes.
During the power struggle after the presidential elections in 2001, five of those provinces, whose governors supported Ratsiraka, declared themselves independent from the republic.
It is also mentioned that the communes are the only entities that are operational, and there will be an unspecified period of transition to the new system.
It appears that the departments will be based on the Fivondronampokontany, although it is unclear whether they are already in place and what it means that the assets will be taken over by the regions.