Chapter 301 Austrian Business Delegation

Evacuating Venice is definitely not an option. It would be too big a move. Ernst would not agree to it, and neither would the Austro-Hungarian Empire. What East Africa is doing is just moving the jobs of the Venetian workers who migrated to East Africa to East Africa.

In fact, a large number of Venetians went to East Africa to participate in the great cause of land reclamation, so the industry needed in Nairobi was not huge, but it needed to be professional.

At the same time, Ernst's original purpose was to turn Venice into Austrian territory to avoid the possibility of it becoming a landlocked country in the future, rather than to force the remaining Venetians to oppose Austria's pursuit of autonomy and independence.

If Germany becomes landlocked, East Africa will not worry about it, because most of Germany's sea outlets are concentrated in the Baltic Sea. Britain and France can restrict Germany to East Africa. First, they can block the German navy in the Baltic Sea, and second, they can cut off the Strait of Gibraltar to allow them to escape. It goes around the west coast of Africa, which is quite a distance.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire's access to East Africa mainly relied on the Suez Canal. Although there was a risk of being cut off, both the Austro-Hungarian Empire and East Africa had the ability to counterattack. Furthermore, the Suez Canal was related to the vast majority of countries and regions along the Mediterranean and Red Sea. interests, maintaining the smooth flow and safety of the Suez Canal is not a matter for East Africa alone.

…

Mombasa.

Mombasa was particularly lively today. A welcome ceremony held by the city hall was held at the pier. Many government dignitaries, including East African Finance Minister Von der Leyen, also participated in the welcome ceremony.

A ship flying the flag of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was moored at the pier, and it was the Austrian business delegation that got off the ship.

Von der Leyen stepped forward and said: "Welcome to East Africa! I am the Minister of Finance of East Africa, Von der Leyen."

"Hello, Minister von der Leyen! I am Wolfgang, the leader of the Austrian business delegation."

As Wolfgang spoke, he looked at the environment of Mombasa. The first impression he gave people was that it was neat and uniform, or dull and featureless. There was no garbage or sewage on the streets, and the city seemed relatively empty. The main reason was that The roads are relatively wide and the houses are not concentrated.

Seeing Wolfgang looking around, von der Leyen said: "Mr. Wolfgang, what is your first impression of Mombasa? If you have any questions, I can answer them."

Wolfgang: "Mombasa is quite good. I had imagined the sights of East Africa countless times before coming here, but Mombasa alone in front of me was beyond my expectations."

Von der Leyen: "Mombasa is almost a city that was demolished and rebuilt. We are committed to bringing German culture into Africa, so you don't have to be polite in East Africa. It's almost the same as returning to your own home."

The Austrian business delegation agrees with this point. They are all Germans, so it is naturally very useful.

Wolfgang: "Minister von der Leyen, although Mombasa looks pretty good, why are your roads so wide and the buildings so far apart that they look empty? Will this cause a huge problem?" A waste of money?"

Wolfgang has been to many places in Europe. Currently, in cities in many European countries, the roads are generally narrow, the flow of people is large, and the building construction also pays attention to the utilization rate. In his opinion, the construction in Mombasa is a bit too extravagant.

Von der Leyen: “On the one hand, it is because East Africa is vast and sparsely populated, and land resources are not very scarce. Second, East African cities pay more attention to the living environment. You see, although the buildings are more scattered, the green plants are also relatively abundant. According to our East African In other words, this is called a garden city, and it is convenient to match the city's supporting facilities, such as drainage systems and reserved water pipes, street lights, warning signs and other spaces. Mombasa's temporary economic capacity is limited, so the related facilities are not perfect, but we refer to other The advantages of the city are that it reserves enough space for the future development of Mombasa. As for the relatively wide roads, pedestrians and goods on the streets are well-ordered according to the traffic rules of walking on the right, so the traffic efficiency is also very good, and it is definitely surplus at the moment. , but if Mombasa’s population increases in the future, there will be no need to re-plan.”

Wolfgang believed von der Leyen’s explanation by three points, which at least shows that the East African government has a far-sighted vision, but he chose not to give the remaining seven points because currently no European city can live up to what von der Leyen said. level, so the difference is even further in East Africa. This is a huge administrative waste and is flashy.

Wolfgang said: "Although what you said makes sense, the population of East Africa is not large. How many years are you prepared to make this city become what you said? Thirty, forty or even longer."

Von der Leyen: "Currently, the population of Mombasa has reached 60,000, second only to Dar es Salaam. It has only been just over three years since we Germans opened this city. This is the effect after expelling the local Zanzibaris, which means that we can make Mombasa and other cities like Europe in terms of population by relying solely on immigration, so the future development of Mombasa must be very promising."

Sixty thousand people was not a lot for this city, but now in 1870, Berlin had a population of only 7.8 million, while Vienna had about 5.6 million.

Of course, Dar es Salaam and Mombasa have special circumstances. They are the two largest transit ports in East Africa, so the scale of employment can support such a large population gathering. Just providing services to passing ships and sailors has created a large number of jobs. At present, after the expansion of Nairobi City is completed, it will become a "big" city with a population of more than 50,000 or even 100,000.

The third largest city in East Africa is currently Mbeya, and the fourth is Mwanza. It will also fall to the fourth and fifth positions due to the sudden rise of Nairobi. This is the power of policy.

Although East African cities seem to be able to reach European levels, most of the existing urban populations in East Africa are at the township level, and are basically provincial capitals. Among the provincial capitals, Mombasa is currently the only one with a population of over 50,000.

After listening to von der Leyen's words, Wolfgang also became interested in East Africa. He asked: "If you look at it this way, Mombasa's development is still remarkable. After all, it has transformed from a colonial city to the city it is today. A modern German-style city is not a small achievement. I would like to know what the population size of East African cities is now?"

Population, especially the size of urban population, means labor force and market. If East Africa is qualified for these two things, coupled with East Africa's resources, it will not be enough for entrepreneurs to invest.

Although the Austrian business expedition was entrusted by the royal family, they mainly came to make a fortune. That is, it was for the sake of His Majesty the Emperor that they traveled thousands of miles to East Africa for inspection.

Von der Leyen did not answer Wolfgang's question directly, but said: "At present, the population of East Africa is mainly concentrated in agriculture and rural areas, and the urban population is not prominent. But the northern industrial belt we are planning, namely Mombasa, The three cities of Nairobi and Kisumu are the industrial zone. The population of these three cities alone reaches about 100,000. Among them, Nairobi will have more experienced workers immigrating to East Africa due to the war in Venice. The urban population of Nairobi will exceed 100,000. One hundred thousand, in addition to the industrial belt along the outer edge, there are many villages distributed, and the population in the area is about 600,000."

Von der Leyen did not disclose the specific strength of East Africa as a whole, but simply repeated the population size of Kenya to the delegation.

There is no need for Von der Leyen to describe too much. Just the number of 600,000 makes many people feel itchy. Today, the Greek population is only 1.45 million, and southern Kenya not only has a relatively sufficient population, but also rich resources.

Von der Leyen continued: "In addition, we are planning a large-scale cotton planting base in the north. It is not ordinary cotton, but long-staple cotton. The quality may be somewhat different from Egypt, but it will not be much worse. At the same time, the north is also There are large-scale farms, and the agricultural foundation in southern Kenya is relatively good. Sorghum, wheat, corn, and millet are all grown, including coffee plantations in South Prussia, where Nairobi is located.”

This is the agricultural foundation of the northern industrial belt, rich in raw materials, and Austrian businessmen can also rely on these products to invest in promising related industries.

Wolfgang: "East Africa does have its own advantages in this regard. After all, you have rich land resources and are located in the tropics. However, I want to understand the local medical conditions separately."

Wolfgang spoke his mind. He had heard that the environment in Africa was harsh and there were many diseases. It was not a matter of investment or not, but a matter of life.

Von der Leyen: "Mr. Wolfgang, you don't have to worry about this. Our investment in medical care in East Africa is very high, and through health and environmental transformation, population loss has been reduced to an extremely low level. In this regard, It can be said that it is far lower than other regions at the same latitude and very close to European standards. You see, I came to East Africa four years ago. Many of our government officials, including military officers, have stayed in East Africa for at least three years."

Even if von der Leyen doesn't say so, the living environment in East Africa is actually better than most areas at the same latitude. After all, most of East Africa is located in the tropical plateau zone, which is very livable. In addition, East Africa has vigorously promoted and promoted health. Enforcement and large-scale culling of mosquitoes, although due to the low level of science and technology, people except Ernst could not understand the principle, but they muddle-headedly reduced the chance of disease outbreaks in East Africa.

Not to mention that in the current era, Europe may not be able to do much about diseases. As far as Ernst knows, in his previous life, in 1872, during the World Expo held in Vienna, a large-scale cholera epidemic occurred, causing thousands of deaths. This was in Vienna. .

The non-concentrated population distribution in East Africa, coupled with the effective surveillance system, also makes it impossible for the disease to spread on a large scale in East Africa. The Minister of Health in East Africa is a powerful person, and the existence of the top five people in the government knows that East Africa is in this regard. Attention is paid to the fact that there are many officials in East Africa who rely on the health, medical and disease prevention and control systems. The subsequent rollout of the telegraph system in East Africa will further enhance the possibility of blocking the spread of infectious diseases in East Africa.