African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 539: Chapter 217 Civilization Lighthouse

”Ernst!”

Just as he got home, Ernst was stopped on his way to the office by his father, who had just returned from Bajamojo.

”What’s the matter, Father?”

”Yesterday, I went to Bajamojo and was quite pleased to see the urban development in East Africa. However, I read in the newspaper that a city in Chicago is planning to construct a several dozen-meter-tall building in the coming years. I wonder if we could do something similar in East Africa. Our cities here look almost identical to those in Europe, without any distinctive features.”

Ernst immediately understood what his father was hinting at. If he was not mistaken, the building Constantine mentioned was the Chicago Home Insurance Building — the world’s first skyscraper.

”Father, I feel the buildings in East Africa are already quite good. There’s no need to single-mindedly chase after height, plus the buildings here also have a sense of aesthetics and artistry.”

”What do you know? I just feel that East Africa lacks a striking landmark building. It’s not just because Chicago is building some tall structure to catch people’s eyes that I thought of this. Besides, doesn’t New York have the Statue of Liberty and a bunch of heavy buildings, truly a crowd of nouveau riche.”

Listening to his father’s sour tone, Ernst couldn’t help but chuckle.

”What are you laughing at? I’m asking you a question!”

”Alright, I pretty much get what you mean, father. You just want a landmark building, right? Tell me what specific ideas you have, and if it’s doable, I’ll definitely make it happen for you.”

For Ernst, it’s all about making Constantine happy. Spending some money was no big deal. Was Ernst lacking money? Surely, but a wealthy person like Ernst lacked big money, and building a wonder was just a small expense.

Of course, some wonders can be costly and might even hinder a country’s development. However, Ernst and Constantine were not the kind of people who sought enjoyment at any cost, so they knew their limits.

As expected, after hearing Ernst’s words, Constantine was in a good mood and truly started to deliberate: ”We certainly can’t learn from those nouveau riche Americans.”

After careful consideration, he said: ”Firstly, our building should have extremely high artistic and visual appeal, not inferior to those of other countries. Otherwise, it would be pointless to build it. Secondly, it must have historical and cultural elements, to clearly differentiate it from the American nouveau riche. Lastly, it should preferably have some practicality, and the cost shouldn’t be too high.”

The requirements laid out by Constantine might seem moderate, but in reality, they were quite challenging, especially the second point — historical and cultural elements. This is precisely what East Africa lacks, a field where it’s outdone by most countries.

Ernst thought carefully. If anything, what best represents East Africa are the lions on the savannah. That seems to be the first impression most people have of Africa.

The design of East Africa’s national flag considered this point. Over the years, East Africa has been a learner, with little innovation in cultural fields. Its uniqueness lies in its natural heritage. The Black people have some sort of civilization, but it’s not considered mainstream.

So Ernst said, ”What we lack most in East Africa is historical and cultural depth. Therefore, we might as well use world civilization as a perspective, incorporating distinctive East African cultural symbols as references.”

Constantine nodded and said, ”That makes sense. Then, how about including national history?”

According to Constantine’s idea, although East Africa’s history is relatively short, it has seen more than a decade of development. Moreover, being such a vast nation, it could surely make a significant mark in human history in the future.

But Ernst thought differently; the history of East African nations is essentially a history of a feudal slave state. This is, undeniably, East Africa’s biggest blemish, to the point where Ernst hadn’t even established a national day for East Africa, which would be as ironically laden as Thanksgiving.

In the future, once all Black people have assimilated and slavery is abolished, Ernst intends to segregate future East Africa from the current East African Kingdom. The Kingdom was a slave state, which is unchangeable; the Empire can become a new one.

So, Ernst shook his head and said, ”That’s not necessary. I don’t hold much hope for national history. Our system in East Africa isn’t aligned with international mainstream opinion; focusing on that might invite criticisms.”

Things like feudal autocracy, slavery, market constraints... are all negative, so we’d better focus on world civilization for this landmark structure.

Ernst’s words enlightened Constantine: ”You’re right; there are indeed such concerns.”

Even Constantine felt that all of East Africa seemed to be covered in blemishes, with hardly any merits. In reality, there are merits, which include the national strength and royal status accrued through these flaws.

Ernst, noticing his father’s slightly downcast mood, comforted him: ”Looking through the lens of world civilization might not be a bad thing for us. We can say its theme is global civilization, but once the landmark stands in East Africa, it will belong to East Africa, and no one can take it away.”

”Indeed? You are sharp; I almost fell into a cognitive trap.” Constantine came to his senses.

Culture might belong to the world, but ultimately, it’s tied to regions. For instance, the Great Wall stands proudly on Eastern soil, making it primarily Far East Empire’s, and only secondarily, the world’s.

Similarly, things built on East African land also have an irrevocable connection to East Africa, allowing ties to world civilization, yet anchoring them firmly in East African soil.

Suddenly, Ernst had a flash of inspiration.

”Father, why don’t we build a lighthouse!”

”A lighthouse?”

”Yes.”

”A lighthouse, I feel, might not be very original?”

Speaking of lighthouses, they are indeed very common, especially since the West entered the Age of Exploration.

East Africa has built many lighthouses, especially with the development of several new ports. In terms of size alone, some are even among the largest in the world.

After all, Dar es Salaam and Mombasa are considered world-class ports, though they don’t compare to New York or London, both cities with million-plus populations. However, cities with populations of tens of thousands are rare in this era. Moreover, combined, the old and new districts of Dar es Salaam have over 200,000 inhabitants, potentially reaching 300,000 in years to come.

”A lighthouse is a common landmark, especially for port cities — the Lighthouse of Alexandria is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. So, if we build it right, it could be quite significant.”

”What do you propose? Build it in Mombasa or Dar es Salaam?” Constantine asked.

A lighthouse should naturally be built at a port since a landmark is meant for people to see. Therefore, Constantine naturally thought of the two international ports of East Africa: Dar es Salaam and Mombasa, as those two cities are the only ones showcasing the national image of East Africa to the world.

”Let’s choose Dar es Salaam! Mombasa’s climate is somewhat lacking.”

If it were in the past life, Mombasa would certainly outpace Dar es Salaam in development. But in this life, the situation has reversed. Especially after the Central Railway’s completion, Dar es Salaam has thrived far beyond, with other cities in Central Province acting as enhancers.

”This time, we’ll build a ’Civilization Lighthouse’!”

”Civilization Lighthouse?”

This name was rather appealing, thought Constantine inwardly.

In fact, Ernst had a moment of brilliance earlier when he thought of the name Civilization Lighthouse. In the past life, the West always prided itself on branding America as the beacon of civilization.

What if East Africa truly had a ”Civilization Lighthouse”? Just thinking about it amused Ernst. If someone raised the concept of a civilization lighthouse again, they couldn’t ignore East Africa’s ”Civilization Lighthouse.” Unlike the symbolic civilization lighthouse, this lighthouse in East Africa would be a real one, in the physical sense. Wouldn’t that be a form of trolling?