African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1346 Urban Transformation
Through decades of expansion, East Africa has gotten rid of the predicament of lacking basic resources such as oil and coal. If Ernst had been satisfied with the land of Tanzania in the previous German East Africa, the upper limit of East Africa would have been a regional power.

The area of ​​German East Africa in the previous life was less than one million square kilometers. Although Tanzania is considered a place with relatively rich resources, it is only relatively speaking. The only two countries in Africa that are truly outstanding in terms of resources are South Africa and Nigeria in the previous life, with the former having more coal and the latter having more oil.

To a certain extent, this also reflects the important role of energy in economic development. Even if East Africa has more overseas territories, its roots are on the African continent, just as it is impossible for Britain to move its political center from the British Isles to India.

In the history of European colonization, only the Portuguese royal family went to Brazil to develop for a period of time, but unfortunately, the Portuguese royal family still focused on mainland Portugal.

Judging from the current development status of Brazil and Portugal, Brazil has already surpassed its former colonial master, and in the past, Portugal might have surpassed Brazil economically.

However, most of Portugal's overseas territories in this time and space have been taken away by East Africa, and the remaining Portuguese colonies are not big enough and have insufficient resources to support Portugal's prosperous life.

……

Mbeya city.

In July 1919, the Bohemian Province of East Africa organized a group of officials to come to Mbeya for study and exchange.

The Province of Bohemia is also the most important industrial area in central East Africa. Its predecessor, Matabele Province (Zimbabwe), was once known as the two major heavy industrial bases in East Africa together with the South Salzburg Province where the city of Mbeya is located.

Today, the Matabele Province has long been divided into two parts, namely the Province of Bohemia and the Province of Lorraine, and South Salzburg has been renamed the Province of Salzburg.

The Province of Bohemia inherited most of the industries of the former Matabele Province and has always been a heavy industrial base in East Africa. Its status in East Africa is no less than that of the Ruhr area in Germany or the Great Lakes Industrial Zone in the United States.

However, the Province of Salzburg is quite different. Although it is still one of the important heavy industrial bases in East Africa, the Province of Salzburg has made outstanding achievements in the field of science and technology in recent years, and its light industry has also made great progress.

After a brief tour of Mbeya, Harare Mayor Ikuti lamented: "Although our Harare is larger than Mbeya, with a population of nearly 200,000 more, making it one of only three cities in the country with a population of over one million, it was only after arriving in Mbeya that we truly realized the gap between the two cities."

“Whether it is transportation planning, urban design, or environmental and cultural construction, Mbeya is much ahead of Harare. This shows that even though Harare has surpassed Mbeya in population and city size, we still have a long way to go.”

Harare is the third most populous city in East Africa, second only to Dar es Salaam and Mombasa, with a population of about 1918 million in . Mbeya ranks fifth in East Africa, second only to New Frankfurt, with a population of over .

By 1918, household registration data showed that there were only three cities in East Africa with a population of over one million, which was not high, especially compared with the United States, where there were nearly ten cities with a population of over one million during the same period.

Moreover, among American cities, there are giants like New York with a population of over five million, and Chicago has a population of nearly three million. This shows the gap in city size between East Africa and the United States.

Of course, if the permanent population is included, the number of cities in East Africa will definitely be a little more than the statistics, but it cannot be too much more. Take Dar es Salaam, the largest city in East Africa, for example. Including the permanent population, there are less than two million at most.

Even if we calculate based on two million people, New York's population is still larger than two Dar es Salaams, which to a certain extent reflects the differences between East African urban development models and those of countries such as the United States.

After all, East Africa's total population is tens of millions larger than that of the United States, and its economic size and industrial scale are slightly larger than those of the United States. If it wants to build a world-class metropolis like London or New York, it is fully capable of doing so.

In addition to the lack of international metropolises with a population of over five million, the number of cities with a population of over one million in East Africa is also scarce, which is on the same level as Russia, although Russia only has two cities with a population of over one million: Moscow and St. Petersburg.

But the population of these two cities may be comparable to the only three cities in East Africa with a population of over one million.

Russia's economy, industry and transportation are much more backward than those of East Africa, so it is obviously impossible for East African cities to be of this level.

In fact, East Africa has the largest number of medium-sized cities in the world. There are fourteen cities in East Africa with a population of over 500,000. In addition, there are a large number of small and medium-sized cities with a population of less than 500,000. For example, the Port of New Hamburg has a population of only more than 300,000, but its industrial level is not low.

That is to say, excluding Dar es Salaam, Mombasa and Harare, there are still eleven cities in East Africa with a population between 500,000 and 1 million.

In Russia at the same time, there was only one city of this level, Volgograd. In other words, there were only three cities in Russia with a population of more than 500,000, namely Moscow, St. Petersburg and Volgograd. This shows how shockingly low the level of industrialization in Russia was.

In the early 20th century, cities with a population of over were considered large enough, especially in Europe. For example, in Germany, there were nearly cities with a population of over before World War I. In Russia at the same time, there were about cities with a population of over .

Therefore, Mbeya, with a population of more than 800,000, is one of the rare large cities in the world. If the permanent population is included, the population of Mbeya should easily exceed one million.

In this way, the number of cities in East Africa with a population of over one million may not be much less than that in the United States, but overall it should still be less than that in the United States. In addition to the difference in quantity, the population may be even less than that in the United States. After all, New York alone has a population of over five million, which is equivalent to the sum of Dar es Salaam, Mombasa and Harare.

When you think about it this way, London in the UK is even more terrifying. You have to know that the population of London before the war was as high as over 7 million, while the total population of the UK was only over 40 million.

Compared with the urban development models of the United Kingdom and the United States, the administrative intervention of East African countries in urban development is an important reason for the formation of the current urban pattern. In addition, the geography of East Africa has also contributed to the development of this model.

For example, the United Kingdom has a small land area and less usable land, so it is more appropriate to concentrate the population in London. Large American cities are concentrated on the East Coast and the Great Lakes region, which is also reasonable. The climate in the western United States is relatively harsh and the terrain is rugged and complex, so it cannot support too many people.

The differences between the east and west coasts of East Africa are relatively small, and it is hard to say which is better or worse, so the population distribution is relatively balanced.

In response to Mayor Ikuti's sentiments, the mayor of Gweru, Bohemia Province, Valenci, affirmed: "Mbeya is one of the first heavy industrial cities in the country to undergo transformation."

"In addition, Mbeya developed relatively early, has a more complete industry, and has a very prominent transportation location, so it is reasonable that it is relatively developed." Mbeya is one of the earliest cities in East Africa. When Mbeya became the center of the colonial region, Bohemian cities such as Harare were still wildernesses where indigenous people hunted.

The early development of a city is naturally an advantage, especially since some local industries will continue to stay in the local area according to historical inertia.

Ikuti said: "It's not entirely due to these reasons. The most important thing is that Mbeya caught the trend. After all, there are many cities in East Africa that were established as early as Mbeya, such as Dodoma and Tabora, whose development is relatively unsatisfactory."

Mayor Valencia said: "That's because other cities are developing too fast. When the empire's territory was expanding, it snatched a lot of good places from the Portuguese and the Boers. With better conditions, they naturally got more resources, such as Cabinda, Luanda, Maputo, Beira and other cities."

"Most of the cities in our province have developed into what they are today because of the development of mineral resources. This is our advantage, but from a long-term perspective, over-reliance on mineral resources is not a long-term solution. Otherwise, we would not have come to Mbeya to study."

This time, the Bohemian Province organized officials to go to Mbeya for study and exchange in order to learn from the experience of Mbeya's urban industrial transformation.

As a heavy industrial base, the economy of Bohemia is highly dependent on heavy industry, which itself is highly polluting, low-profit and highly resource-dependent. Today, a number of small towns with depleted resources have emerged in Bohemia, which has caused concern among the provincial government.

Of course, the problems of the Province of Bohemia are not very serious. If it really encounters big problems, it will take at least a few decades to solve them. However, decades are just a blink of an eye for a country. This is a short-term concern for the Province of Bohemia.

Ikuti said: "The successful transformation of Mbeya City is of great reference significance to us. Take Harare City as an example. The industrial scale is large, but the proportion of heavy industry is high, and the pollution is serious, which has a certain impact on the city's water quality, air and soil. This is even after we have taken some measures to avoid it as much as possible."

"Coming to Mbeya is completely different. The industry in Mbeya is still strong, but the sky is bluer, the rivers and lakes are purer, the air is fresher, and with the deliberate landscape and cultural shaping of Mbeya, I think this place is better than most cities in the world."

“For a city like Mbeya, I guess only Vienna can be compared to it.”

Vienna is a relatively beautiful city, which is why Ikutim compares Vienna with Mbeya.

Valensi said: "Vienna is still much stronger than Mbeya. After all, it is the capital of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. If we really want to compare, we should compare Rhine City with Vienna. However, Rhine City developed too late and is much smaller than Vienna. In addition, Rhine City itself has relatively large restrictions on industry, so the two are even more incomparable."

Vienna's industry is also very strong, and it also has administrative, financial, cultural, educational and other functions, so it is difficult for ordinary cities to be compared with Vienna.

Ikuti said: "I am only considering the economic and landscape aspects. Mbeya is definitely not as good as Vienna in terms of comprehensive conditions, but there is no other city in the Austro-Hungarian Empire that can be compared with it."

This is also true. The permanent population of Mbeya is over one million, and its economy, industry, science and education, and transportation are all very developed. It would be a big city in other countries.

Valensi said: "As the provincial capital, Harare is not bad. Its resource endowments are not much worse than those of Mbeya. As long as it adjusts its direction, it will surely be able to transform successfully. But our problem in Gweru is much bigger."

“Other than mining and metal smelting, Gweru does not have any other major industries, so even if we want to transform the city, the difficulty is beyond your imagination.”

As the capital of the Province of Bohemia, Harare has no shortage of public resources such as administration, education, and medical care. It is also a transportation hub. With many industries, even if it undergoes transformation, it will eventually succeed after a short period of pain.

But Guiru is completely different. Although it is also a prefecture-level city, Guiru is a typical resource-based city with a very simple industrial structure. After all, Guiru City was established based on local mineral resources.

“The development prospects of Gweru City are indeed not optimistic. This is also a problem faced by many cities in the province, especially many small and medium-sized towns. The difficulties they face are even more serious than yours,” Ikuti said.

"According to the requirements of the provincial government, some towns will inevitably be eliminated in this round of transformation unless they can find sustainable industries."

"There are many competitors in this industry. Your advantage lies in your relatively good foundation. Therefore, integrating your resources and supporting emerging industries is the only way out. If you can make it, you will have a bright future. If you can't, you will just die slowly."

Resource-based cities are not without other advantages, but these advantages are brought by mineral resources, such as hospitals and schools serving workers in mining areas, railways built for mineral transportation, factories built with investment, and so on.

However, all these industries are supporting projects for the original mining and related industries. If the resources are exhausted, serious problems will arise. If other ways out cannot be found, it will inevitably lead to population outflow, and the population outflow will cause some schools, hospitals and factories to close down, further aggravating the population outflow, thus forming a vicious circle.

This is also the reason why the Province of Bohemia is anxious, and the city of Guiru is a typical industrial and mining city.

Valenci said: "This is also a problem I am worried about. In fact, Guiru is at least a prefecture-level city. No matter how big the gap is, as long as the administrative level is maintained, it can be maintained. But what is more important is the towns under Guiru."

"So, when I return this time, I want to reintegrate the city's resources as much as possible, retain as many enterprises and public institutions as possible, lay off a number of unreasonable enterprises and institutions, or directly promote the transformation of some enterprises on the spot."

"The basic conditions in our Bohemian Province are not bad. The successful transformation of Mbeya City in recent years has been achieved thanks to the local geographical and policy advantages."

“Gweru cannot be changed geographically, so we should learn as much as possible from Mbeya in terms of policy, especially how to support the development of some conventional enterprises. This is a very important point.”

The so-called conventional enterprise can also be understood as an ordinary enterprise without any outstanding features, but this type of enterprise is the most unusual. After all, most enterprises belong to this type.

For example, the crude processing of agricultural products does not require much technical content, but the market is relatively stable and can drive a number of jobs, which is what Valencia is interested in. Of course, this is also the reason why Valencia is not optimistic about high-quality companies being willing to develop in Gweiru.

After all, Gweru is just an ordinary city in East Africa. How can it attract high-quality enterprises? Just like some cities, there are no high-quality universities, and the industrial and economic foundation is not strong, but they always try to develop some seemingly cutting-edge industries. Most of them will only fail. After all, their inherent foundation is weak. If the foundation is not laid well, it is easy to develop abnormally in the later stage.

(End of this chapter)