Seventy-year-old Aung San Suu Kyi will assume up to three or four Cabinet portfolios in Myanmar's new government, giving her wide powers in addition to a hand-picked president who is a trusted friend.

She herself is blocked from the presidency under the junta-era Constitution, which bars people with foreign family links from the post - her two sons are British citizens.

It was not clear which portfolio Ms Suu Kyi would take. A list of 18 proposed names were read out in Parliament yesterday morning, but not their proposed portfolios. There are 21 ministries and Ms Suu Kyi is the only woman on the Cabinet list.

National League for Democracy (NLD) officials said she would take the foreign affairs portfolio. But in a list circulating on social media, Ms Suu Kyi was tipped to take the Foreign Affairs, President's Office, Education and Energy ministries.

NLD spokesman Zaw Myint Maung told Agence France-Presse that Ms Suu Kyi would "mainly" be foreign minister. Holding the foreign portfolio would put her on the National Defence and Security Council with the president, two vice-presidents and the chief of the armed forces. It would give her representation internationally too.

The President's Office portfolio offers the position of a super minister, somewhat like current President Thein Sein's ministers, Mr Soe Thane and Mr Aung Min, who have worked as wide-ranging negotiators and troubleshooters with the ear of the President.

Following the NLD's sweeping victory in the general election last November, Ms Suu Kyi raised some eyebrows by saying she would be "above the president".

But President-elect U Htin Kyaw is a family friend going back to their parents' generation - which would help make the relationship seamless, analysts say.

Members of Parliament are to vote on the Cabinet nominees this week, possibly tomorrow.

The NLD, which has reduced the number of government ministries from 36 to 21 in an effort to streamline the administration, has emphasised national reconciliation, and at least two members of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, which crashed badly in the elections, were on the list - Mr Thura Aung Ko, former deputy minister for religious affairs, and Mr Thein Swe, a former minister for transport. Also named were Mr Sein Win, Mr Kyaw Swe and Mr Ye Aung, all three reportedly lieutenant-generals, who are expected to take the three ministerial positions appointed by the armed forces chief - Home, Defence and Border Affairs.

Mr Nai Thet Lwin, a 76-year-old ethnic Mon and vice-chairman of the Mon National Party, is on the list and expected to take the newly created Ministry of Ethnic Affairs - a critical role, given the powerful army is still at war with a number of armed groups.

Consultancy firm Vriens & Partners' managing director in Myanmar, Mr Nyantha Maw Lin, wrote in an e-mail: "There is nothing surprising about (Ms Suu Kyi's) assumption of a far-reaching role in the Cabinet. The executive is where the reins of power lie.

"Early indications are that she will take up more than one ministership. This will allow her to create a de facto head of government role for herself, and leave the head of state role to President-elect Htin Kyaw.''

Two analysts, who asked not to be named, warned of "bottlenecks", especially with no deputy ministers to distribute work to.

Mr Nyantha Maw Lin acknowledged "some doubts have been expressed as to her abilities to oversee multiple ministries". But he said: "I would only note that she can still develop the next line of management, as any head of government would. Only in this case, it would have to be the deputy ministers or some form of technical or management team.''