The Chima Fiefdom System in Kanem-Bornu and its Transformation into District Head Administration in British Borno, Northern Nigeria (19th and 20th Centuries)

The Chima system under the Mai - ruler of Kanem-Borno (the longest-lasting pre-colonial African state) - is a fiefdom based on control of human and material resources. This form of the state governance had the Chima Kura or lords (senior Chima) and their subordinates or Chima Gana (junior local representatives) administering the state under the Mai. The study of how the Chima system was transformed under British colonial administration - the "indirect rule" or the Ajiya or district head system - in Borno Province shows its incorporation as Native Authority, a unique form of indirect rule. It evolved as the local government administration in Borno and Nigeria after 1960, thereby adapting the pre-colonial Chima system into a colonial and post-colonial administrative system in Borno, Nigeria.