Chapter 1032 The world’s largest closed country
Luanda City.
In a teahouse in Luanda, several Germans were discussing the changes in East Africa in recent years. The most common foreigners in Luanda are Germans, French and Portuguese, but they each have their own differences. circle.
“Through the First Five-Year Plan, the level of urban construction in East Africa has been significantly improved. When I first went to Luanda to invest, the south of the factory was still a wasteland. In just five years, a large number of various Types of factories and buildings are rising from the ground.”
“East Africa is undergoing rapid changes. I have also visited some cities on the west coast and east coast, and these cities are as vibrant as Luanda. .”
"The population of these cities is expanding rapidly like cities in Europe, but it is not like the disorderly growth of cities in European society. The transfer of a large number of cheap workers from rural areas to cities will cause many social problems, which is very common in European cities. . ”
“But the quality of the urban population in East Africa is obviously relatively high. High, which benefits from the implementation of compulsory education, but education cannot solve fundamental problems, especially employment and urban management. "
"Directive countries in East Africa have avoided unemployment through administrative means. problem, in Luanda, the largest city in West Africa, there is not a single unemployed person, and the vast majority Most people's jobs are distributed, and the East African government hopes to eliminate discrimination caused by work differences through public opinion means."
"Including improving the status of workers, raising some professional benefits, and praising them through newspapers and other media. Some professions that are generally discriminated against in European society ”
"However, I am not optimistic about this behavior of the East African government. It is not conducive to social competition and progress. However, the East African government does not need to consider these issues at the moment. As a backward country, the main job of the East African government at the moment is to catch up with other countries. , so you won’t encounter this kind of trouble frequently.”
As a German businessman, Clovis witnessed the rapid development of Luanda during the First Five-Year Plan and also made a lot of money. Under such rapid development, opportunities are indispensable, especially for people like Clovis who are engaged in Business people.
There are many foreign-funded enterprises in East Africa, but in addition to investing in mid-to-high-end industries and obtaining East African government subsidies and policy preferences, only second-tier dealers like Clovis have made huge profits.
Of course, Clovis's national policy towards East Africa is mixed. East Africa is undoubtedly a big market, but this market is not as free as Europe, so East Africa restricts the access of businessmen like Clovis. However, because of the relationship between East Africa and Germany, businessmen like Clovis had the opportunity to profit from East Africa.
However, this situation was about to change soon. On June 12, 1905, the East African government further expanded the issue of "opening up".
We welcome business groups or individuals from European countries including the United Kingdom, Portugal, Spain and other countries to conduct trade activities in East Africa. At the same time, East Africa will further open port cities as trading locations, relax tariff barriers for a number of commodities, and increase cooperation with countries around the world. trade relations.
It seems that East Africa is actively embracing the international market. In fact, after the First Five-Year Plan, East Africa can produce many industrial products on its own and has high market competitiveness. Therefore, the East African government will allow some goods to enter East Africa and cooperate with relevant state-owned enterprises in East Africa. compete.
So the fundamental reason for this change is the improvement of industrialization in East Africa. The current urbanization level in East Africa is obviously much lower than that in Europe. However, through the industrial construction in the 1990s and the First Five-Year Plan, the industrial volume in East Africa has declined. Losing to most industrial powers in the world.
Although the level of industrialization is still low, corresponding to the population size of East Africa, even the low level of industrialization means that the industrial volume of East Africa has achieved astonishing results.
In 1904, the urbanization rate in East Africa was about 20% or more. Before the First Five-Year Plan, it had reached 23%. After the First Five-Year Plan, this figure will obviously not be lower. At 23 percent.
The East African government’s estimate is about 25% or 27%. Although it has only increased by a few percentage points, according to the current East African population data, it can increase by at least one million. industrial population. The East African government's figures are approximately over three million, which represents the brilliant achievements of East Africa's First Five-Year Plan. Although not as exaggerated as the former Soviet Union's First Five-Year Plan, it was unparalleled in the world at that time.
During the First Five-Year Plan of the Soviet Union, at least more than 10 million people poured into cities. The current population of East Africa may be much smaller than that of the Soviet Union, but it should not be far different.
The main reason is that there is currently no relevant census of population data in East Africa. According to the census practice in East Africa, a national census is now conducted every ten years, so the population data of East Africa should not be updated until around 1910.
However, even without accurate data, it can be seen with the naked eye that the changes in East African society are huge. Businessmen like Clovis may have deep feelings about the changes in East African coastal cities, but East Africa is vast The changes in the inland areas are even more striking.
Under the politics of keeping a low profile in East Africa, East Africa’s economy also likes to be secretive, including defense industry, automobile manufacturing, power industry and other important industries, most of which are located in inland areas.
Only diplomats from various countries could get a glimpse of the development of East Africa through the Central Railway, and the scope of business activities of businessmen like Clovis was limited to the coastal cities of East Africa.
At present, there are nearly 600 cities in East Africa, and the total number of open port cities along the coast is only more than 20. Therefore, it is obviously impossible to analyze the true strength of East Africa through the coast.
Take the east as an example. Although cities such as Dar es Salaam and Mombasa dominate the list, the total number of cities along the eastern coast is only a dozen, and the economic development levels of these coastal cities are very different. big.
These cities are only about twenty points on the map of East Africa. Excluding these twenty points, they all belong to the inland area of East Africa. The division of this area is not entirely based on the coastline. , but the degree of openness.
As a result, the proportion of the inland economy in East Africa far exceeds that of coastal cities. Take the central region of East Africa, the most industrially developed region, where heavy industry accounts for more than 70% of the country (including western Tanzania, Zambia , Zimbabwe, southern and eastern Congo, and vast areas in western Mozambique).
Although coastal areas have unusual advantages, they are not as exaggerated as those of many countries in previous generations. During the first and second industrial revolutions, industry mainly focused on resource-rich areas, while East Africa’s industrial development resources were mainly concentrated in Central China. In the southern region, this also makes the proportion of industry in central East Africa far greater than that of the coast.
This situation is not unique to East Africa in this era. For example, Germany's industrial areas are also inland, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire's industry is concentrated in Bohemia (Czech and Slovakia).
It is very difficult for other countries to get a glimpse of the development of the inland East Africa. The first is the issue of identity. That is, after the capital of East Africa was moved, the location of the Rhine City was deep inland, thus providing diplomats from other countries. The opportunity to go deep into the hinterland of East Africa. When the first town was the capital, foreigners could only reach the first town as far as the first town. The first town was only about 70 kilometers away from the coastline, which was basically not much different from the coastal cities. Big difference.
Even after East Africa moved its capital to Rhine City, the scope of activities of diplomats from various countries was limited to Rhine City. Preventing the penetration of foreign forces into East Africa has always been an important task in East Africa.
So in fact, East Africa is just like a certain peninsular country in East Asia in the previous life, and it belongs to North Korea. However, East Africa does not have the harsh diplomatic environment of North Korea, nor does it have the blockade of East Africa by a powerful country like the United States.
Although Britain is the world hegemon at this time, its control over the world is far from the exaggerated effect of the United States in its previous life.
(End of this chapter)