African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1572 Industrial Clusters in the Central and Eastern Regions

Since the Great Depression of 1929, totalitarian forces around the world have expanded rapidly, as evidenced by the rise to power of extreme nationalist parties in Europe and the governmentalization of the United States in the South.

All of this demonstrates that the global colonial system built by Britain and France since the late 19th century was on the verge of collapse.

This world order system encompasses many areas, including military, economic, ideological, and cultural fields. The rise of totalitarian forces indicates that the opportunity for the collapse of the old international order in the ideological sphere has arrived.

Of these sectors, the economy was the first to collapse. Since the late 19th century, countries such as Germany, the United States, East Africa, and the Soviet Union have risen in terms of economy and industry, which has disrupted the original world economic order.

The collapse of the economic order led to the strengthening and awakening of national consciousness in developing countries and underdeveloped regions. Developing countries demanded a redistribution of spoils, while underdeveloped countries and nations demanded independence.

To completely overthrow the old international order, only one final step remains: to break the military hegemony of the old international order led by Britain and France.

In conclusion, war is slowly approaching, and whoever gains more military advantage before the new spoils-sharing conference will have the upper hand.

This is why East Africa values ​​military talent from the Austro-Hungarian Empire; it presents an excellent opportunity for East Africa to study the development of modern European warfare.

……

1934 7 Month 5 Day.

East Africa, downstream of Zambezi.

Since the construction of the Kabra Basa Reservoir began, the entire downstream area of ​​Zambezi has been exceptionally bustling and busy, as the project itself carries the strategic intent of changing the economic landscape of East Africa.

The construction of the reservoir involves issues such as electricity consumption, water resource allocation, and navigation, which are directly related to the development of surrounding towns and villages. Therefore, the construction of the Cabralbasa Reservoir is a systematic project.

Today, the new Tayte City cross-river bridge was officially completed.

This 892-meter-long suspension bridge spanning the Zambezi River is currently the longest suspension bridge in East Africa.

The reason it is temporary is that the planned bridge across the river in Xindai City downstream is longer and also uses a suspension structure. However, due to technical issues, its construction started a year and a half later than that of the Taecheol Bridge.

The main technical challenge of the Hsindai Bridge is its wind resistance. The East African coast is also prone to typhoon threats. In the last century, Beira and other southeastern coastal areas were hit by typhoons.

Therefore, for safety reasons, East Africa has established a special research team to tackle this problem and improve the wind resistance of the Hindee Bridge. In addition, Hindee is located in the Zambezi River Delta, and its geological structure is different from that of Tete, with softer soil, so it is necessary to deal with issues such as subsidence.

"The construction of the bridge across the river in Tete will be more conducive to the future development of the area along the river in Tete, breaking down the geographical isolation of the city, helping the city expand, and driving the development of the area on the south bank of the river," said Mayor Okon of Tete, East Africa, at the press conference.

"At the same time, once the new cross-river bridge is completed and the new railway bridge is built, the old bridge in the former Tayet City will also be demolished."

"This will ensure the compatibility of land transportation and shipping in Tete, thus laying the foundation for Tete's status as a major national water and land hub."

There was originally a railway-road bridge built in Tete, which was completed during East Africa's First Five-Year Plan, against the backdrop of the accelerated construction of railways across East Africa at that time.

At that time, the national railway network in East Africa was rapidly taking shape, and Tete was already designated as an important industrial city in East Africa in the future, becoming a new steel production base. Therefore, the development of transportation in Tete was naturally a top priority in East Africa during the First Five-Year Plan period.

However, due to the limitations of technology at the time, the Tete railway bridge did not have redundant space for later river navigation. Therefore, after the Zambezi River navigation plan was implemented, the railway bridge became a major obstacle.

However, it's not too late to demolish it now. Since its construction, the Tete Railway Bridge has served Tete and the East African Railway for nearly 30 years, and it has long since recovered its costs. Moreover, it is nearing the end of its service life. Originally, the Tete Railway Bridge was expected to have a lifespan of 30 to 40 years. Even if it is not demolished now, it will need to be reinforced and maintained in the future.

As for why the design life is so short, it should be said that during the planned economy period in East Africa, many projects were inherently driven by short-sightedness and a desire for quick results.

Of course, given the circumstances at the time, the pursuit of quick results in large-scale engineering projects in East Africa was not necessarily a drawback. After all, East Africa's economy was developing rapidly while its transportation infrastructure was extremely underdeveloped. The conflict between these two factors necessitated this development model in East Africa.

Economic development opportunities are fleeting; once you miss one, it may be a long time before you can get another.

Therefore, even though many technologies in East Africa were not up to standard and materials were not available at the time, projects had to be launched quickly to meet the needs of the rapidly developing economy.

Of course, the East African government did not forget this point afterward, and gradually identified these hidden dangers during the economic adjustments of the 1920s.

This is actually the second phase of infrastructure upgrades in East Africa, now in the implementation stage.

Compared to thirty years ago, during the First Five-Year Plan, conditions in East Africa have undergone tremendous changes. The workforce is more professional, the materials sector has comprehensive reserves with numerous breakthroughs, industrial capacity is robust, building materials are abundant, technology and equipment are more advanced, and the level of mechanization is higher.

This has led to a shift towards higher quality requirements in East African infrastructure projects during this round of construction, while also taking into account multiple factors such as human factors and economic considerations.

This contrasts with the current industrialization of the Soviet Union, which, during its rapid industrialization phase, prioritized practicality, sacrificing aesthetics, comfort, and even safety.

However, these are all necessary steps for early industrialized countries. If they are hesitant and take their time to achieve high-speed economic and industrial development, it will be impossible to achieve this.

After all, economic and industrial development involves not only internal factors but also external factors. In the global market, countries around the world are competing fiercely, and any country that slows down will pay the price, unless it can be certain that its geographical location is safe and that it will not be involved in colonial aggression and war, or it does not care about the economic development of foreign countries.

Take East Africa, for example. Without the early industrialization driven by short-sighted profit-seeking, East Africa could not have rapidly become a world power in just two or three decades. And without becoming a power, it would have been vulnerable to attack in the early 20th century, and even more so in the late 19th century.

A prime example is the South African War. At that time, East Africa was beginning to take shape as a major power in the international community, yet it still could not escape being bullied by Britain.

At that time, East Africa was by no means weak in the world, especially in the military field, where its army and navy were among the best. Yet it still had to fight a war with countries like Britain and Portugal to secure decades of peace. It's hard to say whether other countries could have withstood British pressure.

Mayor O'Conn continued, "As a riverside city, Tete City itself values ​​the development of the riverside economy, and the development of the riverside economy must overcome transportation limitations."

"The Taite City River Bridge is a thoroughfare for residents on both sides of Taite City, and also an important regional transportation hub."

"It is not only crucial for the travel needs of people in our city and region, but also connects the three major industrial areas in East Africa in the future, and is an important link in the industrial cluster in the central and eastern regions."

The three major industrial regions are the Bohemian Industrial Region in East Africa, the Lake Malawi Industrial Region, and the Lower Zambezi Industrial Region, which is under rapid development.

The Bohemian and Lake Malawi industrial regions took shape earlier. For example, Mbeya, located on the north shore of Lake Malawi, is one of the earliest industrial bases in East Africa. The Bohemian industrial region was basically formed after the 1980s and became a new heavy industrial base in East Africa at that time.

After East Africa seized Mozambique from the Portuguese, Tete became a natural hub city between the two major industrial zones.

Because Tete is the only place between the two major industrial zones that is suitable for building a large city, and it is also the most suitable place for transportation routes.

Therefore, in the 20th century, multiple highways and railways converged in Tete to connect the Lake Malawi industrial area and the Bohemian industrial area.

Later, with the development of the steel industry and its geographical advantages, Tete City experienced a rapid industrial rise. The development of towns such as Hindei City in the lower reaches of the Zambezi River eventually led to the emergence of the Lower Zambezi Industrial Zone, which was formed based on the Zambezi River.

This has led to Tete becoming the core intersection of the three major industrial zones, and after the middle and upper reaches of the Zambezi River become navigable, it will be able to rely on shipping to integrate into the East African Central Industrial Zone.

These four industrial zones constitute the East-Central Industrial Cluster mentioned by Mayor O'Connor. Once this industrial cluster emerges, it will become one of the most economically developed, industrially complete, densely populated, and well-equipped regions in East Africa and even the world.

Under the grand strategy of industrial clusters in the central and eastern regions, the development potential of Tete, a core city, will be greatly expanded, and it may even directly contribute to Tete's competition for the title of the largest city in East Africa in the future.

Of course, Tete's competitors are also formidable. First, there is Mombasa, currently the largest city in East Africa, whose dominance in the East African financial industry has been established, making it difficult for other cities to surpass it. Moreover, Mombasa's economic hinterland should not be underestimated.

Mombasa's economic sphere of influence is mainly in northern East Africa and the Great Lakes region. Although northern East Africa has long been an economically weak region in East Africa, it is a large area and has almost no competitors within the region.

Then there are the two cities on the west coast of East Africa, Cabinda and Luanda. These two cities are now comparable to Tete. Once a center is established in the economy of West East Africa, the development potential of whichever of Cabinda or Luanda emerges will also be expanded.

Finally, there's Hinde. While Hinde isn't currently ranked among the top cities in East Africa, its future also poses a threat to Tete.

Tete City has a superior geographical location, but so does Hsinde City. Hsinde City is located at the mouth of the Zambezi River and is the terminus of Zambezi River shipping. Even Tete City's overseas trade must pass through Hsinde City. It is difficult to judge which city will be better in the future.

Besides the cities mentioned above, other regions in East Africa are also very competitive, such as Beira and Maputo in the south, and Dar es Salaam in the north.

Ultimately, in the current economic landscape of East Africa, competition between cities is exceptionally fierce, especially among the top ten cities, where the differences between them are very small.

However, one thing is certain: Tete has a bright future. With the opening of the Zambezi River shipping route, it will be difficult for Tete to fall out of the ranks of major East African cities, unless war breaks out there.

Mayor O'Conn stated, "In the future, Tete City will be the Imperial Steel Industry Base, a major hub city for the nation's railway, highway, waterway, and air transportation, a core city of the central and eastern industrial cluster, an equipment manufacturing base, and so on."

"Tete will become the most prosperous metropolis in East Africa and even the world. We have a huge advantage, especially in the industrial sector, which will solidify our position as the leading industrial city in East Africa."

East Africa's financial centers include Mombasa, Cabinda, and Rhine, making it difficult for other cities to achieve this status. Technology centers include Rhine and Mbeya, regions with concentrated educational and research resources. Tete will also find it difficult to obtain this title, mainly due to its short history and insufficient accumulated experience.

East Africa has many industrial centers, so Mayor Okon particularly emphasized the title of the nation's number one industrial city, which is also the first point that Tete City can most easily achieve at present.

As previously mentioned, Tete is located in the center of four major industrial regions in East Africa. Three of these four industrial regions have developed mainly based on the distribution of local mineral resources in East Africa, namely the Central Industrial Region, the Bohemian Industrial Region, and the Lake Malawi Industrial Region.

Therefore, Tete, as the intersection of these three industrial zones, can enjoy the advantages of this resource distribution. In addition, Tete itself is an important mineral resource city in East Africa, so it naturally has the foundation to become an important industrial city of the empire.

With the Zambezi River now navigable, Tete will be able to further reduce its industrial development costs by importing resources from overseas. Combined, these two factors will bring Tete's industrial development costs down to the lowest level in the world, while also facilitating industrial concentration.

Therefore, Tete has already met the basic conditions to become the leading industrial city in East Africa, or even the world.

Of course, "number one in industry" here refers more to the scale of industry. East Africa's view of Tete is more similar to that of Suzhou in the Far East Empire in the past. However, being number one in industrial scale does not mean being the most developed.

Tete's core advantage lies in industry, but other cities in East Africa can surpass Tete in other areas. For example, Mombasa, now the largest city in East Africa, is significantly stronger than Tete in finance, emerging industries, education, and healthcare.

Then there are special cities like Mbeia. Since Mbeia ceded its position as the country's leading heavy industrial base to Harare in the last century, its development focus has completely shifted. Instead of pursuing industrial scale, it has invested in high-quality fields such as education and science and technology.

There are many cities in East Africa with an industrial scale that surpasses Mbeia's, but no one dares to say that Mbeia's economic development is inferior to theirs. This is because Mbeia's development in the fields of science and education is too brilliant, and it has no obvious shortcomings in other aspects. The only city that can be sure of surpassing Mbeia in the field of science and education is Rhine City, but Rhine City is the capital of the empire, and other cities obviously cannot achieve this status.

(End of this chapter)