Belgium has 6 governments

Belgium is a federal state

Why does a small country like Belgium have 6 governments? Belgium is a federal state, which means that there are several federated states:

Belgium has 3 regions

• The Flemish region
• The Walloon region
• The Brussels-Capital region

And 3 communities

• The Flemish community
• The French community
• The German community.

5 regional governments and 1 federal government

Each federated state has its own government. As an exception, the federated states of the Flemish Community and the Flemish region have a single Flemish government. As such, there are 5 regional governments in Belgium, and 1 federal government. The federal government takes decisions for the country as a whole.

A government is made up of ministers and secretaries of state, each of whom has their own powers: Home affairs, Foreign affairs, Justice, Public health, etc.