African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 114: Chapter 109: Data

Ernst sat in the armchair, reviewing this year’s East African colony data.

With northern Kenya falling into the hands of the East African colonial government (only having sovereignty, development has not yet begun), the East African colony area reached around 1.4 million square kilometers. Former Tanzania and Kenya are basically in the hands of the East African colony (Zanzibar Island and the northeastern coastal desert of Kenya are yet to be unified).

Currently, the registered immigrant population of the East African colony has reached 582,413, of course, excluding the number of Black indigenous people. Presently, the colony has control over around 400,000 to 800,000 Black people.

In the beginning, Ernst and the East African government estimated that the immigrant numbers by the end of the year would be close to 500,000. The reason for surpassing this estimate is the immigrants from the Paraguayan War and from the Southern German region, which provided two new immigrant sources.

The composition of immigrants changed due to the addition of new sources. Chinese immigrants are still the largest group but are just over 300,000. Immigrants from the Austro-Hungarian Empire come second, almost 200,000, third are Paraguayan immigrants, mainly women and children, fourth are Armenian and other Middle Eastern immigrants, and fifth are immigrants from the German regions.

Of course, when calculated by ethnicity, the number of Germans is considerable, ranking third. A substantial part of the Austro-Hungarian immigrants are Germans.

Immigration from the Southern German region has not yet exerted its full potential. Optimistically, at least 200,000 Germans can be recruited from the entire German region next year (not including the Austro-Hungarian Empire).

The large fluctuation in the number of indigenous captives is because the indigenous people are not deemed significant enough for the East African colony to waste effort on detailed statistics.

The development of East African land requires a large workforce. Some hazardous projects demand many indigenous captives to reduce the loss of immigrants.

Moreover, some indigenous people manage to escape the first wave of purges. After all, the East African colony can’t send out everyone for raids; farmland and crops need tending, so some slip through the net, only to be captured during patrols.

So, currently, the total population of East Africa, including indigenous people, is about a million. Using this population, the entire East African colony has developed 3.49 million mu of land this year.

Among these, 730,000 mu are rice fields, mainly distributed in the coastal plains of East Africa and near the Great Lakes Region, which are still expanding to the north and south ends of the coastal plain. In the future, the southernmost point will be the Lufuma River Basin in the Marine District, and the northernmost point will be the Assirif River Basin in the East Kenya District.

With an average yield of 200 kilograms per mu (fluctuating between 180 and 250), the expected output may reach at least 1.4 billion kilograms. If further processed into rice, approximately 84 million kilograms of rice could be obtained.

Currently, 1.51 million mu of wheat have been planted in East Africa, making it the undisputed largest grain crop of the East African colony, mainly distributed on the inland plateau and the northern end of developed lands in Kenya.

The inland plateau receives less rainfall, suitable for wheat growth, but the wheat yield cannot match rice, with an average yield of about 160 kilograms per mu.

The expected wheat output is around 2.4 billion kilograms. Wheat flour yield is high, around seventy percent, equating to about 1.68 billion kilograms of flour.

Apart from rice and wheat, there are another 200,000 to 300,000 mu of other grain crops, including potatoes, millet, and corn.

The scale of cash crops has also reached one million mu, focusing mainly on sisal, oil crops, cotton, coffee, and rubber.

The above data is conservatively calculated. After all, the currently developed land in East Africa consists of high-quality, water-abundant, fertile land.

Moreover, extensive use of farmyard manure (East African excrement is centrally processed) and a small amount of imported fertilizers (mainly from Europe) ensures yields are high.

The actual number of immigrants used to develop this much land is less than 400,000, given that later immigrants have not yet had the time to develop new land.

Such achievements are inseparable from the use of Black indigenous people, who currently serve as the equivalent of oxen and tractors.

Ploughing fields, digging channels, building roads all require a large number of indigenous people, but immigrants can’t idle either as farming is meticulous work that needs to be done by immigrants themselves.

The arrival of people has also stimulated the growth of urban populations in East Africa, where large cities have populations of twenty to thirty thousand, and small ones only two to three thousand.

First Town is the indisputable largest immigrant city in East Africa, with a total population of about 30,000.

Dar es Salaam is the second-largest immigrant city, with over 27,000 people. In reality, counting the foreign merchants, Arabs, Portuguese, Dutch, etc., in Dar es Salaam, it is the most populous city in the East African colony, already exceeding 30,000. If indigenous slaves are included, the number is even higher, as this is the only reserved slave market in the East African colony.

However, East African population statistics only consider registered immigrants, excluding indigenous people and foreigners.

The third-largest city population is unexpectedly not a coastal city (such as Mombasa, with its long history), but Mwanza, deep inland, with a population of over 23,000.

Fourth is currently the only mining city in the East African colony, Mbeya, with over 21,000 people, mainly developing coal and iron, along with other resources (gold, copper, etc. by-products).

Fifth is Mombasa, with a population of around 20,000. Mombasa fell into the hands of the East African colony relatively late, but due to high attention and policy inclination, just behind Mwanza and Mbeya, it has developed rapidly.

Sixth is Tanga, with a population of more than 18,000. Tanga was the earliest controlled coastal port and has become a center for sisal processing and trade in East Africa, with European merchants placing orders here daily.

Seventh is Bajamojo, with a population of more than 13,500. As a port city, Bajamojo has developed steadily. Although it belongs to the Central District’s three major cities (First Town, Dar es Salaam), its functions overlap with Dar es Salaam, so it’s not outstanding. Still, Bajamojo has good potential for future prospects.

Currently, the East African population does not meet the port demand, which Dar es Salaam alone can satisfy the Central District’s needs. Still, as East Africa grows, Dar es Salaam alone may not meet the Central District’s demands, and then Bajamojo can supplement Dar es Salaam port.

Eighth is Dodoma, with a population of over 13,000, comparable to Bajamojo. Dodoma is located at the center of Tanzania, serving as an important transit station for immigrants and goods transported from east to west.

Ninth is Mtwara, with a population of more than 12,000. Mtwara is located in the Lower Marine District, close to the capital Ron Roda of the Lower Marine District, so it has developed relatively well, but the few berths at Mtwara harbor limit its development.

The populations of the above cities have all exceeded 10,000, and the differences are not significant. Each has high potential for future development.

Besides the nine cities above, the next largest population is not a big district capital but the near-coast Bemba Island. As the largest island in the East African colony, it currently has over 9,700 immigrants.

Then, the other unlisted big district capitals like Kigoma, Songea, Ron Roda, Nairobi...

Among them, Nairobi is currently the least populous city in the East African colony, with a scale just over 2,000.

As the largest city in East Africa in the past life, Nairobi’s significance is not overlooked by Ernst. Its current underdevelopment is due to late development.

Kenya was only recently acquired, and Nairobi, deep inland, is not as easily developed. Mombasa, by the sea, has convenient transport, while Kisumu, located along the Great Lakes Region shoreline, can receive support from Mwanza, leaving Nairobi to rely solely on itself.

Additionally, the development of coffee plantations in Kenya diverted Nairobi’s focus. The plantations are situated at the foot of Mount Kenya, directly north of Nairobi, and need manpower, which has hindered Nairobi’s development.

However, Nairobi’s future is very promising. Once Uganda and other areas are occupied, Nairobi will serve as a transportation hub (railway) to Uganda, its development still holds great potential.