African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1177: "Old Friend" in East Africa

1915 4 Month 15 Day.

Port of Luanda.

Since the development of the west coast of East Africa, the communication route of the French to East Africa has also changed. France, like most countries, used to have to take a ship to Dar es Salaam on the east coast of East Africa, and then take a railway to reach the capital of East Africa.

Now the French can reach the East African mainland by just following the Atlantic Ocean, without having to go through the Mediterranean Sea. This is much more convenient for France.

"Special Envoy Thomson, it's been a long time!" East African Foreign Minister Freer said to Thomson.

"Hello, Mr. Freer, you look more elegant than usual." Thomson said to Freer with a smile.

The two men were old acquaintances. Thomson was the former French ambassador to East Africa, so they often dealt with each other when they were in Rhine City.

Looking at the more prosperous Luanda, Thomson couldn't help but sigh: "When I left East Africa, I returned to France from Luanda. Now it seems that Luanda is more prosperous than before. I think after the war, Luanda should also have a high international reputation like Dar es Salaam!"

The outbreak of World War I can be said to have provided an engine for the economic development of cities on the west coast of East Africa. The most proud people in the entire Atlantic are now East Africans and Americans.

Luanda also became the leader in East Africa's trade exports to Western Europe, North America, South America and West Africa. In the 1914 East African urban development, it surpassed the capital Rhine City and ranked first in East Africa's economic growth rate for the first time.

Not only are there East African factories here, it is also the most prosperous region for foreign investment and private economy. French business groups have invested in many new companies in Luanda, Cabinda and other places on the west coast of East Africa.

Luanda made a lot of money in trade with France last year. Many industrial products manufactured in Luanda and agricultural products from the hinterland of East Africa were shipped from here and eventually arrived in France.

It is worth mentioning that France has become the largest exporter to East Africa, and its total import volume of goods to East Africa is even higher than that of Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

"Ambassador Thomson, you are an old friend of our East African people. This time you are back to visit our old place, and we have arranged the highest level of treatment for you." Freer said to Thomson with a smile.

France's wealth and power made the East African governments very happy. Before the war, France was the largest creditor country in East Africa, and French capital's investment and loans to East Africa far exceeded those of Germany, Britain and other countries.

After the outbreak of the war, France became the largest buyer of East African goods, and East Africa's debts to France were rapidly being repaid. It can be said that France has made a significant contribution to East Africa's current industrialization process.

"Haha, Lord Freer is too polite. We in France have always regarded East Africa as a friend of the French. I believe the future of both countries will be bright." Thomson replied politely.

In fact, the diplomacy between East Africa and France is a rather strange phenomenon. The relationship between the French government and the East African government has always been very good, while in contrast, the French public sentiment is not very friendly towards East Africa.

After all, East Africans are also Germans, so as they are of the same ethnic group as the Germans, East Africans were also affected.

The French government is much more rational. For the French government, although East Africa is a German country, it is ultimately an independent country. Germany’s interests are not consistent with those of East Africa, so France has been striving to win over the East African government.

Moreover, there is no conflict of interest between France and East Africa, which is the most important point. During the rise of East Africa, the main offenders were the British, but France, as an ally of the British, was actually happy about this.

The same is true for East Africa. East Africa has a bad relationship with Britain, so East Africa has a completely different attitude towards the Allied camp than towards France and Britain. Britain is in collusion with the United States, so East Africa can collude with France. In this way, even after the war, Britain and France will not be able to join forces against East Africa, of course, the premise is that the Allies win the final victory.

In terms of betting on both sides, East Africa has shown just as good a method as ever. With the Allied Powers, East Africa can play the emotional card, and with the Entente Powers, East Africa can win over France and Britain to compete for the right to speak. In this way, no matter who is the final winner of the war, East Africa has huge room for maneuver.

Thomson said: "I won't go into details. I came here to ask for help from your government. France is in a difficult situation now, so we need material support from East Africa, such as horses, cars, ships, food, etc. We hope that East Africa can increase its support for our country in this regard."

Obviously, Thomson came this time with a procurement mission from the French government. After the outbreak of the war, although France's material supply situation was better than that of landlocked Germany and Austria-Hungary, it was ultimately limited.

"Ships?" Freer's focus was different.

Thomson said with some difficulty: "Yes, because of the war, our ships are relatively scarce. Now the only countries that can help France are East Africa and the United States."

Thomson specifically brought the United States out to make it easier to bargain with the East Africans. After all, France, a long-established imperialist country, did not have much surplus food when facing a war of the scale of World War I.

After thinking for a while, Freer said to Thomson, "Speaking of ships, France might as well buy our second-hand ships. Now that the war has turned ships into consumables, the price of second-hand ships is cheaper. Moreover, our second-hand ships in East Africa are not old. We can give your country the biggest discount."

After all, this East African country has only a half-century history, and even the oldest ship manufactured locally cannot be more than fifty years old.

After only some thought, Freer decided to facilitate this deal for the government. On the one hand, France's demand must be considerable, and even a second-hand ship could fetch a lot of money. On the other hand, East Africa also needed to clear its inventory. With the joint efforts of large and small shipyards in East Africa, the number of new ships launched in East Africa each year in recent years has reached an astonishing number.

Moreover, there is no record of East Africa exporting ships to other industrial countries in history. Not to mention industrial countries, the only countries in East Africa that have received overseas ship orders are actually Paraguay and the Neretva region of the former Austro-Hungarian Empire.

As for the three ships exported to the Neretva region, they were actually given away for free, so Paraguay is the only country in East Africa that has truly achieved a record of ship exports.

Thomson also thought that what Freer said made sense. After all, second-hand ships were in stock and cheap, and were perfect for meeting the transportation needs in this state of war.

"Very good, but I don't know how much inventory your country has. Our demand is very urgent," Thomson asked.

Freer: "This is very simple. Your country should believe in the strength of East Africa. Our country is the second largest ship producer in the world, and the price is much cheaper than that of the UK. It can fully meet your country's needs."

The cost of shipbuilding in East Africa is already very low, mainly due to East Africa's current world-leading steel production, as well as a large labor force, cheap electricity and other factors.

The population of East Africa is second only to Russia and the Far East Empire. Although the population of Britain and its colonies is large, the British shipbuilding industry is basically concentrated in the mainland, and the population of Britain is less than half of that of East Africa, and the number of industrial workers in Britain is far less than that of East Africa.

Today, East Africa has in fact become the world's largest industrial country. This can be seen from today's world trade. East Africa is in a completely advantageous position in the competition with the United States, and its commodity exports are far higher than that of the United States, the former world's largest industrial country.

Subsequently, Thomson conducted negotiations on other materials and products on behalf of the French government and East Africa, including steel, horses, cars, sugar, cotton, arms, etc.

This time Thomson actually came to make large purchases, and the French were very willing to pay. It was not because the French were not short of money, but because East Africa owed France too much money before the war, so many supplies could be directly offset by the debts of the two countries.

(End of this chapter)