African Entrepreneurship Record

After confirming Sivert’s departure for Berlin, East Africa quickly prepared the necessary arrangements and informed the host German government. Meanwhile, Prince Leopold of Sigmaringen also attended the conference on behalf of Sigmaringen.

The Berlin Conference was held in April 1884, much earlier than historically, primarily due to variables brought by East Africa and other countries.

Now, the entire South Africa and East Africa were almost completely divided, leaving only West Africa, so naturally, other countries worried about missing out on the final piece of the pie.

The Berlin Conference quickly turned into a marketplace; after all, with just a few strokes, large areas of land ownership could be established. In the face of interests, no one could remain calm, and arguing heatedly wasn’t considered embarrassing — compared to tangible benefits, face means little.

Unexpectedly, the main rivals at this Berlin Conference were not the German and French arch-rivals, but rather Germany and France united against the British.

France held advantages in Northwest Africa, but not in West Africa, especially after the British intensified their colonial efforts there.

Firstly, the Gold Coast, traditionally considered the wealthiest African colony, was firmly controlled by the British. Then came the coastal areas of the former Nigerian economic powerhouse, where the British also held sway.

The current Nigeria is called the Sokoto Caliphate, an empire covering over a million square kilometers, occupying the most fertile farmland in West Africa and boasting a large population. Its only disadvantage is the fragmentation into many vassal states, but that flaw serves as a boon for colonizers, facilitating colonial rule.

Of course, the Sokoto Caliphate’s coastal areas are small, consisting only of the Oyo Empire and Ijebu Kingdom.

The former Oyo Empire was one of the most renowned African nations in history, at its peak ruling the Dahomey Kingdom, Togo, and most of Nigeria.

Ijebu Kingdom was a relatively prosperous seafaring nation in West Africa, and therefore was conquered by the British around 1892.

These two countries are merely vassals of the Sokoto Caliphate, located in its southwestern coastal region.

In Southeast Sokoto, the territories are not part of the Sokoto Caliphate but are instead independent states like the Benin Kingdom, among others.

It is worth mentioning that the Benin Kingdom is not the predecessor of the modern Benin Republic; rather, the precursor of the Benin Republic was the Dahomey Kingdom.

This insight highlights the destructive impact colonizers had on West African history; if history had been passed down smoothly, the error of Dahomey Kingdom evolving into the Benin Republic wouldn’t have occurred.

The current Benin Kingdom and Dahomey Kingdom are fundamentally different entities, separated by the Sokoto Caliphate. It’s noteworthy that Dahomey Kingdom’s evolution into the Benin Republic was driven by the significant reputation of the Benin Kingdom in Africa, being a famously civilized ancient nation.

It’s similar to the European nations vying for the Roman Empire’s title, akin to the Holy Roman Empire in German history.

The new British colony is not among those mentioned, but instead is the Bonny Kingdom located west of Benin. Bonny Kingdom is a purely coastal nation with scarce inland territory, but its coastline is complex and winding.

This was why the British prioritized occupying Bonny Kingdom, aligning with the characteristics of British maritime colonial ambitions. After all, excellent ports are scarce in Africa.

Within the Sokoto Caliphate’s vassal states and independent countries like Benin, and when including tribes, the territory of the former Nigeria holds over a hundred political entities, including more than a dozen historical ancient nations.

This is merely for the land of former Nigeria. Considering the historically numerous West African countries, even after colonial consolidation, the era sees West Africa as a chaotic mess.

Moreover, there are many indigenous regimes that fled from East Africa to West Africa, further complicating the local situation.

Regarding this, East Africa trades weapons with these indigenous regimes that have fled to West Africa. However, their overall impact on West Africa currently isn’t evident, nor will there be future opportunities, as major powers are strong competitors.

”Germany and France appear to argue intensely, yet they are constantly excluding Britain, especially since the goals targeted by both countries were clearly discussed before the conference,” Sivert told the members of the East African delegation.

”The British representative’s face is practically green with anger; nonetheless, it’s deserved. Britain is the world’s foremost colonial power. Now, with only a large piece of ’Land of No Master’ remaining in West Africa globally, Britain wishes to claim it for itself, naturally leading to exclusion.”

The fundamental cause of Britain losing ground and scrambling with Germany and France is the rise of East Africa, preventing Britain from executing its former ”Two C Plan,” which essentially controlled most of Africa, from Egypt to South Africa, including significant influence in West Africa. Thus, in previous times, Britain was truly Africa’s overlord.

However, post-World War II, Britain couldn’t maintain its sphere of influence, compounded by the US and Soviet Union’s combined pressure, leading colonies to independence, paving the way for the emergence of France as Africa’s overlord.

This is also tied to France’s geographic positioning; West Africa and North Africa are close to the French mainland, coupled with the Cold War era where France’s unification value was evidently higher than Britain’s. Thus, French Africa could maintain relative stability, persisting into the 21st century without collapse.

”Let the three countries argue for now. Other than ensuring East Africa’s related interests in Africa, if we can garner some additional benefits, that would be best,” Sivert instructed his subordinates, reflecting on Ernst’s advice.

While achieving that is unlikely, efforts matter. West Africa’s potential hasn’t manifested yet, despite West Africa being considered one of the world’s rarest chosen lands historically.

Particularly Nigeria, with its coal, iron, oil, arable land, and population indexes all being good, sufficiently supporting the development of a global power.

Ernst chose to establish his foundation in East Africa; but had he focused on Western colonialism, Nigeria would be his first choice.

In reality, the benefits of choosing West Africa were far more apparent than East Africa — that is, the resources crucial for industrial development, with West Africa being entirely self-sufficient, unlike East Africa, which lacks fossil fuels like oil.

Additionally, East Africa’s mineral resource endowments are poor. To solve resource issues, East Africa expanded southward toward South Africa until annexing the Matebel Plateau, thereby fully addressing the issue, but this only satisfied the first industrial revolution’s demands.

This is why Ernst’s next target was Angola, which holds two primary resources critical for East Africa — oil and hydroelectric power.

Both are located near the mouth of the Congo River, where the waterfalls downstream of the Congo River harbor unique hydroelectric resources globally.

The petroleum sites are also near the Congo River’s mouth, and finally, Angola’s ports are a key route for East Africa into the Atlantic.