Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, the autonomous prefecture under the jurisdiction of Gansu Province, the water conservation area and supply area of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, the ecological main functional area and the ecological civilization pilot demonstration area determined by the state. As of December 2019, the prefecture has jurisdiction over 1 city and 7 counties, with a total area of 45000 square kilometers. By 2021, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture has a total population (registered residence population) of 753400 and a permanent population of 691000.

Gannan is located in the west of China, southwest of Gansu, the junction of Gansu, Qinghai and Sichuan provinces in the transition between the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Loess Plateau, connected with Aba Prefecture of Sichuan in the south, Huangnan Prefecture and Golog Prefecture of Qinghai in the southwest, and Longnan City, Dingxi City and Linxia Prefecture in the east and north. The whole prefecture is divided into three natural types of areas. The southern part of the prefecture is the Mindai Mountains, with a mild climate, and is one of the "six green treasure houses" in the country; The eastern part is hilly and mountainous area, where agriculture and animal husbandry are concurrently operated; The northwest is a vast meadow grassland, which is one of the "five pastoral areas" in China.

Gannan is known as "the small Tibet of China and the back garden of Gansu". There are two national nature reserves, Gahai and Zecha, two national forest parks, Lianhua Mountain and Yeliguan, and dozens of natural scenic spots, such as Sangke Grassland, the first bend of the Yellow River, and Dayu Valley; There are 121 Tibetan Buddhist monasteries, including the national cultural relics protection units, such as Xiahe Labrang Temple, Zhuoni Chanding Temple and Luqu Langmu Temple; There are more than ten revolutionary historical sites, such as Tiandang Lazikou and the site of the Russian Conference; There are folk festivals such as the Fragrant Wave Festival, the Sun Buddha Festival, the Flower Picking Festival and the Flower Festival.

Gannan was rated as "the most attractive tourist attraction in the west" by the Western Development Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; It was rated as one of the "50 places to go in one's life" by China National Geographic and others; It was rated as "China's most ethnic tourism destination" by the United Nations Human Settlements Development Promotion Association.