Shire of Gannawarra

The Shire of Gannawarra was formed in 1995 from the amalgamation of the Borough of Kerang, the vast bulk of the Shire of Kerang and Shire of Cohuna,^[3] giving the new LGA a mixed economic base – dairying country to the east of Kerang township and dryland cropping to the west.^[7] The Borough and Shire of Kerang advocated for the inclusion of the Shire of Gordon in the combined LGA,^[7] but Gordon was staunchly opposed to a northward merger.^[8] Gordon was instead amalgamated into the Loddon Shire.

The new LGA required a name that did not show bias towards Kerang or Cohuna.^[9] Under the Local Government Board's initial proposal, it was to be called the "Shire of Illoura",^[7] a word meaning "still waters" in an unspecified Aboriginal language that, following inquiries with local groups, was found not to be local to the area.^[10][9] Representatives from the three municipalities agreed to put forward "Gannawarra" – the name of the pastoral run that once covered much of the eastern part of the Shire – to the Board as an alternative.^[9]

The northeastern border of the shire is the Murray River. The Loddon River flows through the shire, feeding into the Murray. The Gunbower State Forest is a significant source of River Red Gum timber, supplying a historic sawmill in Koondrook. Gunbower Island is the largest inland island in the local area.^[11] It is between the Murray River and the Gunbower Creek, an anabranch of the Murray.

The western part of the shire is predominantly used for cereal grain production. The north and east have significant dairying and milk processing. Tourists are attracted to the local rivers (for fishing) and lakes (for bird watching and water sports).

In the 2021 census, the shire had a population of 10,683, up from 10,549 in the 2016 census.^[13]

^ - Territory divided with another LGA

• List of places on the Victorian Heritage Register in the Shire of Gannawarra