Both entities share an almost identical territory, but their status and role is quite different: the South Province, with its provincial assembly in Nouméa, is a full political division, whereas the administrative subdivision of the South is only an administrative division of the French central state, akin to an arrondissement of Metropolitan France, with a Deputy Commissioner of the Republic (commissaire délégué de la République), akin to a subprefect of metropolitan France, in residence in La Foa.
Both entities occupy almost identical regions, but their position and function are significantly different: the South Province, with its provincial assembly in Nouméa, is a complete political entity, whereas the administrative division of the South is merely an administrative component of the French central government, comparable to an arrondissement in Metropolitan France, with a Deputy Commissioner of the Republic (commissaire délégué de la République), similar to a subprefect of metropolitan France, residing in La Foa.