Afghanistan is divided into 34 provinces (ولايت, wilåyat). The provinces of Afghanistan are the primary administrative divisions. Each province encompasses a number of districts or usually over 1,000 villages. Provincial governors played a critical role in the reconstruction of the Afghan state following the creation of the new government under Hamid Karzai. According to international security scholar , many of the provincial governors of the western-backed government were former warlords who were incorporated into the political system.