[1] Prior to its division in 2003, 2007 and 2013 (see below), Konawe was known as the rice granary of the province of Southeast Sulawesi because half of the province's rice production comes from the Konawe regencies.

Konawe Regency was established pursuant to Law No 29 of 1959 (dated 4 July 1959) on the formation of second-level regions in Southeast Sulawesi with the name of Kendari Regency, with the capital being the city of Kendari.

Konawe Regency, since the removal of the seven districts on Wawonii Island to form a new Konawe Islands Regency and the creation of six new districts within the remaining area, is now divided into twenty-nine districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and their populations at the 2010 Census[2] and the 2020 Census,[3] together with the official estimates as at mid 2023.

[1] The table includes the location of the district administrative centre, the number of administrative villages in each district (totaling 297 rural desa and 57 urban kelurahan), and its post code.

Notes: The districts grouped as "East Konawe" are those surrounding Kendari City.

The 2010 totals exclude the districts subsequently split off in 2013 to form the Kepulauan Konawe Regency.