Political: The Songhai Empire was divided into five provinces each led by a governor. Under Askia Muhammad, all the governors, judges, and town chiefs were Muslims. The emperor had total power, but he also had ministers who ran different aspects of the empire for him. They also counseled the emperor on important issues. Social: The society of the Songhai was organized like a caste system that wasn't rigid and used Islam to give the lower classes opportunities to navigate the rungs of society. Economic: Transcript of The Economy in the Rise and Fall of the Songhai Empire. "Trade flourished and made nobles rich. Songhai exported gold, salt, kola nuts, and slaves. They imported textiles, horses, and luxury goods." Songhai's main economic specializations were farming, fishing, mining, the craft of blacksmith, trading, witch-doctors, and they also had a fairly strong military.
