Administrative divisions of Chad: Difference between revisions

Content deleted Content added

Inline

Latest revision as of 17:38, 23 July 2023

The administrative divisions of Chad have often changed since 1900, when the territory was first created by France as part of its colonial empire, with the name Territoire Militaire des pays et protectorats du Tchad.^[1] The first subdivision took place in 1910, when 9 circumscriptions were made, named départements (departments) in 1935 and régions (regions) in 1947. As for the regions, they were further divided in districts.^[2]

In 1960, immediately before independence, the régions became préfectures (prefectures), and the districts instead sous-prefectures (sub-prefectures). The prefectures were in origin 11, later on raising to 14.^[3] In 1999 they were modified in 28 departments; this was ultimately changed in 2002, when 18 regions replaced them.^[4] As for the regions, they are divided in departments, while the latter are divided in sub-prefectures.^[4] After a series of splits in 2008 the number of regions increased to 22.^[5] In 2012 Ennedi Region was split into Ennedi-Est and Ennedi-Ouest, producing the current 23 regions.^[6]^[4]

History

On September 5, 1900, a decree signed by the French President Émile Loubet officially created the Territoire militaire des pays et protectorats du Tchad as part of the growing French colonial empire. The new territory was placed under the command of a Commissioner who answered to the High Commissioner of the French Congo (called French Equatorial Africa (AEF) after 1910), of which Chad was a circumscription.^[7]

In 1906 Chad was merged with the Oubangui-Chari, becoming an autonomous territory within the Oubangui-Chari-Tchad colony, suppressed in 1916. In 1920 Chad was placed on an equal standing with the other AEF colonies (i. e. Gabon, Oubangui-Chari and Middle Congo).^[7]

It was only in 1958, when Chad was granted territorial autonomy, that the country was separated from the AEF.^[8] Two years later Chad was to come full independence under the government of François Tombalbaye and of the Chadian Progressive Party.^[9]

1910–19 circumscriptions

The first Governor-General of French Equatorial Africa, Martial Merlin, built in 1910 for all the colonies he administered a two levels structure. Chad was divided in 9 circonscriptions (circumscriptions), with Fort-Lamy (today N'Djamena) as capital; two years later, as an underdivision of the regions, the subdivisions were introduced.^[2] The Mayo-Kebbi circumscription disappeared in 1911 when the left bank of the Logone River was ceded to the German colony of Kamerun as part of the exchange for the French protectorate over Morocco. the area was retaken by France in World War I, and some years later, in 1922, the circumscription was restored and given back to Chad. On the other side Moyen-Chari was part of Oubangui-Chari from 1925 to 1933.^[10]^[11]

In 1914 a new circumscription was added with Borkou-Ennedi, renamed Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti in 1930 when the Tibesti was passed from Niger to Chad.^[2]

N°	Circumscription	Capital
1	Baguirmi	Tchekna (Massénya)
2	Bas-Chari	Fort-Lamy
3	Batha	Ati
4	Kanem	Mao
5	Logone	Behagle (Laï)
6	Mayo-Kebbi	Léré
7	Moyen-Chari	Fort-Archambault
8	Ouaddaï	Abéché
9	Salamat	Am Timan

1934 departments

Centralization

In 1934 all the AEF was the object of a major administrative reorganization, known as Renard reform after the Governor-General Edouard Renard. Meant to cut down the maintainment costs and transform the AEF in a unitary colony divided in 4 regions. Chad was placed under a commandant de région who answered to the Governor-Delegate in Bangui, who instead was under the Governor-General in Brazzaville.^[12]^[13]

The circumscriptions of Chad took the name of departments and many of them were merged, while two departments, Logone (united with the Mayo-Kebbi) and Chari-Bangoran (Moyen-Chari and N'Délé) were separated from Chad and placed directly under Bangui's administration.^[12]^[13]

N°	Department
1	Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti
2	Chari-Baguirmi
3	Kanem-Batha
4	Ouaddaï-Salamat

Decentralization

The radicality of these centralization measures proved themselves unsustainable, causing their reversion on the return to the previous structure of the AEF in 1936. In that year Logone and Moyen-Chari were returned to Chad while both Kanem-Batha and Chari-Baguirmi were split restoring the original 10 subdivisions. In 1944 the departments were brought to 9, when Bas-Chari and Baguirmi were merged back to recreate Chari-Baguirmi.^[2]^[12]

In 1937 Chad was made fully independent from Bangui but the administrator was given the lesser rank of commandant. The following year his rank was increased to governeur (governor), reestablishing a full parity among the AEF colonies.^[2]

This is the situation of Chad on December 31, 1945, concerning departments and subdivisions:^[14]

N°	Department	Subdivisions
1	Batha	Ati, Mongo, Ouadi Rimé, Oum Hadjer
2	Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti	Borkou, Ennedi, Tibesti
3	Chari-Baguirmi	Bokoro, Bousso, Fort-Lamy, Massakory, Massénya
4	Kanem	Bol, Mao, Moussoro, Rig Rig, Ziguei
5	Logone	Baïbokoum, Doba, Kélo, Laï, Moundou
6	Mayo-Kebbi	Bongor, Fianga, Léré, Pala
7	Moyen-Chari	Fort-Archambault, Koumra, Kyabé, Moissala
8	Ouaddaï	Abéché, Adré, Am Dam, Biltine, Goz Beida
9	Salamat	Am Timan, Mangueigne, Melfi-Aboudéia

References

^ S. Decalo (1987); Historical Dictionary of Chad, 2 ed. Metuchen: The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-1937-6, pp. 8, 309.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e B. Lanne (1998); Histoire politique du Tchad de 1945 à 1958, Karthala. ISBN 2-86537-883-7(in French), pp. 11-12
^ S. Decalo, pp. 30-32
^ ^a ^b ^c Law, Gwillim. "Regions of Chad". Statoids. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
^ Ordonnance n° 002/PR/08 portant restructuration de certaines collectivités territoriales décentralisées
^ Déby, Idriss (4 September 2012). "Ordonnance No. 27/PR/2012" (PDF). Republic of Chad. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
^ ^a ^b B. Lanne, pp. 9-11
^ B. Lanne, p. 9
^ S. Decalo, p. 10
^ S. Decalo, p. 214
^ J. Le Cornec (1963); Histoire politique du Tchad de 1960 à 1962, Librairie générale de droit et jurisprudencie.(in French), pp. 33-35
^ ^a ^b ^c J. Le Cornec, p. 35
^ ^a ^b B. Lanne, pp. 10-11
^ B. Lanne, p. 11

[1] S. Decalo (1987); Historical Dictionary of Chad, 2 ed. Metuchen: The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-1937-6, pp. 8, 309.

[Lanne11-2] B. Lanne (1998); Histoire politique du Tchad de 1945 à 1958, Karthala. ISBN 2-86537-883-7(in French), pp. 11-12

[3] S. Decalo, pp. 30-32

[statoids-4] Law, Gwillim. "Regions of Chad". Statoids. Retrieved 15 June 2015.

[5] Ordonnance n° 002/PR/08 portant restructuration de certaines collectivités territoriales décentralisées

[ordonnance-6] Déby, Idriss (4 September 2012). "Ordonnance No. 27/PR/2012" (PDF). Republic of Chad. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 14 June 2015.

[Lanne9-7] B. Lanne, pp. 9-11

[8] B. Lanne, p. 9

[9] S. Decalo, p. 10

[10] S. Decalo, p. 214

[11] J. Le Cornec (1963); Histoire politique du Tchad de 1960 à 1962, Librairie générale de droit et jurisprudencie.(in French), pp. 33-35

[Cornec35-12] J. Le Cornec, p. 35

[Lanne10-13] B. Lanne, pp. 10-11

[14] B. Lanne, p. 11

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+[[File:Chad adm location map.svg|thumb|Administrative divisions of Chad]]
-The '''administrative divisions of [[Chad]]''' have often changed since [[1900]], when the territory was first created by [[France]] as part of its [[French colonial empires|colonial empire]], with the name ''Territoire Militaire des pays et protectorats du Tchad''<ref>S. Decalo (1987); ''Historical Dictionary of Chad'', 2 ed. Metuchen: The Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-1937-6, pp. 8, 309.</ref>. The first subdivision took place in 1910, when 9 circonscriptions were made, named ''départements'' (departments) in 1935 and ''régions'' (regions) in 1947. As for the regions, they were further divided in districts.<ref name="Lanne11">B. Lanne (1998); ''Histoire politique du Tchad de 1945 à 1958'', Karthala. ISBN 2-86537-883-7{{fr icon}}, pp. 11-12</ref>
+The '''administrative divisions of [[Chad]]''' have often changed since 1900, when the territory was first created by [[France]] as part of its [[French colonial empires|colonial empire]], with the name ''Territoire Militaire des pays et protectorats du Tchad''.<ref>S. Decalo (1987); ''Historical Dictionary of Chad'', 2 ed. Metuchen: The Scarecrow Press. {{ISBN|0-8108-1937-6}}, pp. 8, 309.</ref> The first subdivision took place in 1910, when 9 circumscriptions were made, named ''départements'' (departments) in 1935 and ''régions'' (regions) in 1947. As for the regions, they were further divided in districts.<ref name="Lanne11">B. Lanne (1998); ''Histoire politique du Tchad de 1945 à 1958'', Karthala. {{ISBN|2-86537-883-7}}{{in lang|fr}}, pp. 11-12</ref>
-In 1960, immediately before independence, the ''régions'' became ''[[prefectures of Chad|préfectures]]'' (prefectures), and the districts instead ''sous-prefectures'' (sub-prefectures). The prefectures were in origin 11, later on raising to 14.<ref>S. Decalo, pp. 30-32</ref> In 1999 they were modified in 28 departments; this was ultimately changed in 2002, when 18 regions replaced them.<ref name="statoids">Statoids.com, [http://www.statoids.com/utd.html Regions of Chad]</ref> As for the regions, they are divided in [[departments of Chad|departments]], while the latter are divided in [[Sub-prefectures of Chad|sub-prefectures]].<ref name="statoids"/> Due to a series of splits in 2008, the regions have currently been raised to 22.<ref>Ordonnance n° 002/PR/08 portant restructuration de certaines collectivités territoriales décentralisées</ref>
+In 1960, immediately before independence, the ''régions'' became ''[[prefectures of Chad|préfectures]]'' (prefectures), and the districts instead ''sous-prefectures'' (sub-prefectures). The prefectures were in origin 11, later on raising to 14.<ref>S. Decalo, pp. 30-32</ref> In 1999 they were modified in 28 departments; this was ultimately changed in 2002, when 18 [[Regions of Chad|regions]] replaced them.<ref name="statoids" /> As for the regions, they are divided in [[departments of Chad|departments]], while the latter are divided in [[Sub-prefectures of Chad|sub-prefectures]].<ref name=statoids/> After a series of splits in 2008 the number of regions increased to 22.<ref>Ordonnance n° 002/PR/08 portant restructuration de certaines collectivités territoriales décentralisées</ref> In 2012 Ennedi Region was split into [[Ennedi-Est (region)|Ennedi-Est]] and [[Ennedi-Ouest (region)|Ennedi-Ouest]], producing the current 23 regions.<ref name=ordonnance>{{cite web |last=Déby |first=Idriss |author-link=Idriss Déby |url=http://sgg-tchad.org/ordonnances/ORD_70001.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403231328/http://sgg-tchad.org/ordonnances/ORD_70001.pdf |archive-date=3 April 2015 |title=Ordonnance No. 27/PR/2012 |publisher=Republic of Chad |date=4 September 2012 |access-date=14 June 2015}}</ref><ref name=statoids>{{cite web |last=Law |first=Gwillim |url=http://www.statoids.com/utd.html |title=Regions of Chad |website=Statoids |access-date=15 June 2015}}</ref>
 ==History==
+On September 5, 1900, a decree signed by the [[President of France|French President]] [[Émile Loubet]] officially created the ''[[Colonial Chad|Territoire militaire des pays et protectorats du Tchad]]'' as part of the growing [[French colonial empires|French colonial empire]]. The new territory was placed under the command of a Commissioner who answered to the High Commissioner of the [[French Congo]] (called [[French Equatorial Africa]] (AEF) after 1910), of which Chad was a circumscription.<ref name="Lanne9">B. Lanne, pp. 9-11</ref>
-On September 5 1900 a decree signed by the [[President of France|French President]] [[Émile Loubet]] officially created the ''[[Colonial Chad|Territoire militaire des pays et protectorats du Tchad]]'' as part of the growing [[French colonial empires|French colonial empire]]. The new territory was placed under the command of a Commissioner who awnsered to the High Commissioner of the [[French Congo]] (called [[French Equatorial Africa]] (AEF) after 1910), of which Chad was a circuscription.<ref name="Lanne9">B. Lanne, pp. 9-11</ref>
 In 1906 Chad was merged with the [[Oubangui-Chari]], becoming an autonomous territory within the ''Oubangui-Chari-Tchad'' colony, suppressed in 1916. In 1920 Chad was placed on an equal standing with the other AEF colonies (i. e. [[Gabon]], Oubangui-Chari and [[Middle Congo]]).<ref name="Lanne9"/>
-It was only in 1958, when Chad was granted [[territorial autonomy]], that the country was seperated from the AEF.<ref>B. Lanne, p. 9</ref> Two years later Chad was to come full independence under the government of [[François Tombalbaye]] and of the [[Chadian Progressive Party]].<ref>S. Decalo, p. 10</ref>
+It was only in 1958, when Chad was granted [[territorial autonomy]], that the country was separated from the AEF.<ref>B. Lanne, p. 9</ref> Two years later Chad was to come full independence under the government of [[François Tombalbaye]] and of the [[Chadian Progressive Party]].<ref>S. Decalo, p. 10</ref>
+== 1910–19 circumscriptions ==
-== 1910 - 9 Circumscriptions ==
-The first Governor-General of French Equatorial Africa, [[Martial Merlin]], built in 1910 for all the colonies he administered a two levels structure. Chad was divided in 9 ''circonscriptions'' (circumscriptions), with [[Fort-Lamy]] (today N'Djamena) as capital.<ref>B. Lanne, p. 11</ref> The Mayo-Kebbi circumscription disappeared in 1911 when the left bank of the [[Logone River]] was ceded to the [[German colonial empire|German colony]] of [[Kamerun]] as part of the exchange for the [[French Morocco|French protectorate]] over [[Morocco]]. the area was retaken by [[France]] in [[World War I]], and some years later, in 1922, the circumscription was restored and given back to Chad. On the other side, <ref>S. Decalo, p. 214</ref><ref>J. Le Cornec (1963); ''Histoire politique du Tchad de 1960 à 1962'', Librairie générale de droit et jurisprudencie.{{fr icon}}, pp. 33-35</ref>
+The first Governor-General of French [[Equatorial Africa]], [[Martial Merlin]], built in 1910 for all the colonies he administered a two levels structure. Chad was divided in 9 ''circonscriptions'' (circumscriptions), with [[Fort-Lamy]] (today N'Djamena) as capital; two years later, as an underdivision of the regions, the ''subdivisions'' were introduced.<ref name="Lanne11"/> The Mayo-Kebbi circumscription disappeared in 1911 when the left bank of the [[Logone River]] was ceded to the [[German colonial empire|German colony]] of [[Kamerun]] as part of the exchange for the [[French Morocco|French protectorate]] over [[Morocco]]. the area was retaken by [[France]] in [[World War I]], and some years later, in 1922, the circumscription was restored and given back to Chad. On the other side Moyen-Chari was part of Oubangui-Chari from 1925 to 1933.<ref>S. Decalo, p. 214</ref><ref>J. Le Cornec (1963); ''Histoire politique du Tchad de 1960 à 1962'', Librairie générale de droit et jurisprudencie.{{in lang|fr}}, pp. 33-35</ref>
-In 1914 a new circumscription was added with Borkou-Ennedi, renamed [[Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti]] in 1930 when the [[Tibesti]] was passed from [[Niger]] to Chad.<ref>B. Lanne, pp. 11-12</ref>
+In 1914 a new circumscription was added with Borkou-Ennedi, renamed Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti in 1930 when the [[Tibesti]] was passed from [[Niger]] to Chad.<ref name="Lanne11"/>
 {| border=1 cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0"
@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 !N°||Circumscription||Capital
 |-
-|1||Baguirmi||Massénya
+|1||Baguirmi||Tchekna (Massénya)
 |-
 |2||Bas-Chari||Fort-Lamy
@@ Line 28: / Line 28: @@
 |4||Kanem||Mao
 |-
-|5||Logone||Laï
+|5||Logone||Behagle (Laï)
 |-
 |6||Mayo-Kebbi||Léré
@@ Line 39: / Line 39: @@
 |}
-== 1934 - 4 departments ==
+== 1934 departments ==
-In 1934 all the AEF was the object of a major administrative reorganization, known as Renard reform after the Governor-General [[Edouard Renard]]. Meant to cut down the maintainment costs and transform the AEF in an unitary colony divided in 4 regions. Chad was placed under a ''commandant de région'' who awnsered to the Governor-Delegate in [[Bangui]], who instead was under the Governor-General in [[Brazzaville]].<ref name="Cornec35">J. Le Cornec, p. 35</ref><ref name="Lanne">B. Lanne, pp. 10-11</ref>
+===Centralization===
+In 1934 all the AEF was the object of a major administrative reorganization, known as Renard reform after the Governor-General [[Edouard Renard]]. Meant to cut down the maintainment costs and transform the AEF in a unitary colony divided in 4 regions. Chad was placed under a ''commandant de région'' who answered to the Governor-Delegate in [[Bangui]], who instead was under the Governor-General in [[Brazzaville]].<ref name="Cornec35">J. Le Cornec, p. 35</ref><ref name="Lanne10">B. Lanne, pp. 10-11</ref>
-The circumscriptions of Chad took the name of departments and many of them were merged, while two departments, Logone (united with the Mayo-Kebbi) and Chari-Bangoran (Moyen-Chari and [[N'Délé]]) were seperated from Chad and placed directly under Bangui's administration.<ref name="Cornec35"/><ref name="Lanne10"/>
+The circumscriptions of Chad took the name of departments and many of them were merged, while two departments, Logone (united with the Mayo-Kebbi) and Chari-Bangoran (Moyen-Chari and [[N'Délé]]) were separated from Chad and placed directly under Bangui's administration.<ref name="Cornec35"/><ref name="Lanne10"/>
 {| border=1 cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0"
@@ Line 48: / Line 50: @@
 !N°||Department
 |-
+|1||Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti
-|1||Baguirmi-Chari
 |-
+|2||Chari-Baguirmi
-|2||Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti
 |-
 |3||Kanem-Batha
@@ Line 57: / Line 59: @@
 |}
+===Decentralization===
-<!--
+The radicality of these centralization measures proved themselves unsustainable, causing their reversion on the return to the previous structure of the AEF in 1936. In that year Logone and Moyen-Chari were returned to Chad while both Kanem-Batha and Chari-Baguirmi were split restoring the original 10 subdivisions. In 1944 the departments were brought to 9, when Bas-Chari and Baguirmi were merged back to recreate Chari-Baguirmi.<ref name="Lanne11"/><ref name="Cornec35"/>
-== 1935 - 10 departments ==
-<ref name="statoids"/>
+In 1937 Chad was made fully independent from Bangui but the administrator was given the lesser rank of ''commandant''. The following year his rank was increased to ''governeur'' (governor), reestablishing a full parity among the AEF colonies.<ref name="Lanne11"/>
+This is the situation of Chad on December 31, 1945, concerning departments and subdivisions:<ref>B. Lanne, p. 11</ref>
 {| border=1 cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0"
 |- style="background:#ffe0e0;"
-!N°||Département||Chef-lieu||Subdivisions
+!N°||Department||Subdivisions
 |-
+|1||Batha||Ati, Mongo, Ouadi Rimé, Oum Hadjer
-|1||Ouaddaï||Abéché||Abéché, Adré, Biltine
 |-
+|2||Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti||Borkou, Ennedi, Tibesti
-|2||Salamat||Am Timan||Am Timan
 |-
+|3||Chari-Baguirmi||Bokoro, Bousso, Fort-Lamy, Massakory, Massénya
-|3||Batha||Ati||Ati
 |-
+|4||Kanem||Bol, Mao, Moussoro, Rig Rig, Ziguei
-|4||Mayo-Kebbi||Bongor||Bongor, Fianga, Léré, Pala
 |-
+|5||Logone||Baïbokoum, Doba, Kélo, Laï, Moundou
-|5||Moyen-Chari||Fort-Archambault||Fort-Archambault
 |-
+|6||Mayo-Kebbi||Bongor, Fianga, Léré, Pala
-|6||Bas-Chari||Fort-Lamy||Fort-Lamy
-|-
-|7||Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti||Largeau||Largeau
 |-
+|7||Moyen-Chari||Fort-Archambault, Koumra, Kyabé, Moissala
-|8||Baguirmi||Massenya||Massenya, Bousso
 |-
+|8||Ouaddaï||Abéché, Adré, Am Dam, Biltine, Goz Beida
-|9||Kanem||Mao||Mao, Bol
 |-
+|9||Salamat||Am Timan, Mangueigne, Melfi-Aboudéia
-|10||Logone||Moundou||Moundou
 |}
+<!--
 == Entre 1947 et 1960 : 9 régions ==
@@ Line 219: / Line 222: @@
 ==Entre octobre 2002 et février 2008 : 18 régions==
 [[Image:Chad regions numbered.png|thumb|center|300px]]
@@ Line 270: / Line 272: @@
 == Depuis février 2008 : 22 régions ==
-février 2008, création de nouvelles régions : Borkou, Ennedi, Tibesti par démembrement de la région Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Sila par division de la région Ouaddaï, Barh El Gazel par division de la région Kanem<ref>[http://www.presidencedutchad.org/Activites/Actes/Odonanceno%20002du19fev08.htm Ordonnance n° 002/PR/08 portant restructuration de certaines collectivités territoriales décentralisées]</ref>.
+février 2008, création de nouvelles régions : Borkou, Ennedi, Tibesti par démembrement de la région Borkou-Ennedi-Tibesti, Sila par division de la région Ouaddaï, Barh El Gazel par division de la région Kanem.<ref>[http://www.presidencedutchad.org/Activites/Actes/Odonanceno%20002du19fev08.htm Ordonnance n° 002/PR/08 portant restructuration de certaines collectivités territoriales décentralisées]</ref>
 {| border=1 cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0"
@@ Line 329: / Line 331: @@
 == References==
-{{reflist}}
+{{Reflist}}
-[[Category:Subdivisions of Chad]]
+{{DEFAULTSORT:Administrative Divisions Of Chad}}
-[[de:Verwaltungsgliederung Tschads]]
+[[Category:Administrative divisions by country|Chad]]
-[[fr:Organisation administrative territoriale du Tchad]]
+[[Category:Administrative divisions in Africa|Chad]]
+[[Category:Subdivisions of Chad| ]]