Local administrative units (LAUs) are geographical areas within countries with the purpose of providing statistics at a local level, e.g. regions and municipalities. The official LAU of the country is one of the most important reference data to be used together with MPD. The LAU dataset consists of administrative units at several levels. It should be provided by or be the same as the one used by the NSO for surveys and censuses. It must meet specific requirements as follows:
- the LAU should cover the entire country at all levels;
- there should be no overlapping of LAU polygons at the same level;
- LAUs should be hierarchical – every unit on a lower level should belong to some unit at a higher level;
- the LAU hierarchy should be geometrical – units at the lower level will combine to form the geometry of the unit at a higher level;
- there should be a standardized and logical LAU nomenclature – every unit at every level should have a unique business key.
Problems with LAU data can generate false results. It is, therefore, imperative to check the LAU dataset at different levels (whole country, province, municipality) to ensure that the requirements stated above are fulfilled. Figure 3 presents an example of the 514 administrative regions at LAU level 2 (kabupaten; or municipality) in Indonesia.
Figure 3. Local Administrative Units level 2 (municipality) in Indonesia
Source: BPS Indonesia.