African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 98: Chapter 93 Paraguay Immigration Payment Received

Besides the large number of orphans caused by the Paraguayan War, there are actually even more single-parent families and single women.

The Paraguayan War is not over yet, but it is estimated that there are at least seventy to eighty thousand widows and orphans who have lost their husbands and fathers.

With the intervention of the Heixinggen Consortium, some people have already left this troubled place to start a new life in East Africa.

According to the timeline of the end of the Paraguayan War in the past life, this project can still last for another three or four years.

Before a new government in Paraguay is established, the East African colonies can absorb at least tens of thousands of Paraguayan immigrants, and if coordinated well, even hundreds of thousands are not impossible.

This kind of thing can be done during the war, after all, as a small population country like Paraguay, there were already few people, with a pre-war population of only five to six hundred thousand (there are also data saying more than a million, after all, in that era, many countries did not have a census).

The approach of the East African colonies is essentially uprooting Paraguay’s foundation, but Paraguay is not without a solution.

Originally, Paraguay was an immigrant country and could just absorb more immigrants in the future, but of course, saying this is like farting; if immigrants were that easy to recruit, Ernst would not have had such a hard time.

Moreover, the post-war Paraguay has lost large swathes of land and is a complete wasteland; which immigrant with any sense would want to come to Paraguay to develop? Isn’t neighboring Brazil and Argentina more appealing!

In this regard, the East African colonies are much stronger, though the East African colonies haven’t been established for long, they are already quite a well-developed place in Africa (excluding North Africa).

And compared to Argentina (which is similar to Europe, immigrants don’t need to adapt), East Africa’s environment is overall similar to the Brazilian highlands.

Plus, the East African colonies have a planned and premeditated recruitment of immigrants, which is much faster than those American countries relying on spontaneous immigration.

The East African colonies are rather particular about quality over quantity, being dismissive of rogue and petty theft immigrants while preventing immigrant groups that are difficult to govern and unstable, such as local factions and clans.

If not, the number of immigrants each year surpassing that of the United States would not just be a dream, just immigrants from the Far East alone could top the world in numbers.

This is not an exaggeration because for contemporary immigrants, affording a ticket is quite difficult, unless they encounter a situation where colonies urgently need manpower; the issue is that such situations are not ongoing.

It’s not that there are no countries wanting to build colonies to benefit themselves; back then, the British put a lot of effort into America, and in the end, an entire War of Independence went down the drain.

Therefore, Ernst is very strict about immigration to the East African colonies to prevent a repeat of the American traitors.

The United States could achieve independence because of its many elite members; after all, the Mayflower passengers who fled to America were not refugees but knowledgeable and organized Puritans.

In a past life, there was a saying that Calvin’s Puritanism theory was the founding basis of the United States.

So Ernst is deeply resistant to any theories and beliefs that might unite immigrants, or blood relations and clans...

The East African colonies do not even have priests and churches, and the immigrants have chaotic beliefs, including Protestants, Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Church members, and even a few Green believers.

The beliefs among immigrants from the Far East are even more chaotic, ranging from ancestors, family spirits, the heavens, the Jade Emperor, city gods... to even some who came into frequent contact with Western immigrants who might hedge their bets on God and Allah, fully embodying a pragmatic mindset.

In terms of management, the East African colonies are similar to a company; Ernst naturally has no intention of actively promoting church construction or recruiting priests.

Most immigrants in East Africa are illiterate and old farmers, without systematic religious education; even if they conduct rituals at home, they are just half-knowledgeable, relying on generational experience.

Yet priests can connect people by interpreting religious texts and through missionary work, so Ernst strictly prohibits religious personnel from entering the East African colonies.

And most immigrants in the East African colonies are ordinary folks without ambitions; the leadership is mostly German retirees who return to Germany to retire once their tenure ends.

Combined with the loyalty of the Heixinggen Military Academy students, keeping the leadership continuously well-supplied with personnel from the Heixinggen Consortium.

Currently, the East African colonial government is quite stable, in a state of balancing multiple forces, with Ernst being the only central figure maintaining the cohesion of the East African colonies.

As for causing trouble in the East African colonies, aside from the mutual checks between parties, leaving the export system of the Heixinggen Consortium would cause the economic structure of the East African colonies to collapse.

...

September 10, 1867.

Mogens Krogh.

In the East African colonies, Lower Marine District, Ron Roda City, Masa Town, Engaga Village’s village chief.

He was leading the immigrants assigned to Engaga Village from Paraguay, showing them their new housing.

”Ladies, the current conditions in the East African area aren’t too good, so the furniture and other facilities in these houses are relatively simple, but the environment is certainly not bad.”

Mogens Krogh pointed outside the door:

”Do you see those vast fields? Don’t you feel great? You must know that a year ago, Engaga Village was still a wilderness inhabited only by wild animals, and with the arrival of immigrants, Engaga Village is being developed at a visibly rapid pace, so there’s no need to worry about the living conditions and the future development prospects of the East African colonies. This place is far from war, and order is maintained; with the government’s clearing of surrounding wild beasts, you won’t see a trace of them, making it very safe.”

The translator was a resident from Paraguay who spoke German, and these immigrants who came to East Africa to escape the turmoil, though mostly Spanish-speaking, benefited from the past fragmentation and warfare in Germany, which had led to many Germans moving abroad.

Currently, Prussia’s integration of the North German region has improved things, cooling down the immigration wave, and the female translator was a descendant of Germans who immigrated to Paraguay, so she could speak both German and Spanish.

Mogens Krogh continued: ”And you absolutely caught a good time. To take care of you widows and orphans impacted by the war, Prince Ernst of Prussia, who is the owner of the East African colonies, has personally dug into his pockets to subsidize you poor souls, and the East African colonies offer free education for your children... So live at ease in Engaga Village; things will get better.”

After listening to Mogens Krogh’s introduction, these Paraguayan women who had traveled across the sea from distant lands relaxed.

Some cried tears of joy, blessing Ernst’s health before God.

Having lost their husbands in the war, they are also victims, and as the war continues with no end in sight, many are left with no choice but to leave Paraguay, the troubled land, to live in East Africa for their children’s safety.

Of course, the living subsidies also helped them make some decisions, because ultimately, they would have to raise their children alone, and having a subsidy could alleviate some pressure.

Before coming to East Africa, they might have worried about the local government going back on its word, but once the houses were allotted, they immediately felt at ease.