Chapter 231
"According to our current borders, we have gained so much new territory. Also, for the sake of governing these newly occupied lands, I believe we need to reform the existing administrative divisions," said King Constantin.
Right now, East Africa has a total of 18 administrative regions, plus two occupied zones under military control – the southwest (Zambia) and the northeast (Somalia). Among those 18 established regions, 17 lie in the east, and only 1 – the East Katanga Region – is in the southwest. Of the 17 eastern regions, besides the Central Region and the northern Omo Ratte Special Zone, the remaining 15 lie in what used to be Tanzania, Kenya, and the Great Lakes area.
For some time, Constantin has intended to reform East Africa's administrative layout. The kingdom is vast but sparsely populated, and dividing the eastern half into so many small districts wastes administrative resources. More importantly, as East Africa has expanded, some older regions are no longer practical—especially for defense.
For instance, in the southern area bordering Portugal along the Ruvuma River, there are the East Lake Malawi Region and the Lower Coastal Region. It would be better to merge them. That way, they can respond more effectively to any threat from the Portuguese colony, and the East Lake Malawi Region has little presence—centered on Songea, it obviously can't compare to Mbeya. Meanwhile, the Lower Coastal Region has the good port of Mtwara, and Rohn Roda (the capital) is developing nicely. Mtwara was built partly to serve both the East Lake Malawi Region and the Lower Coastal Region. Combining them for defense, economics, and simpler administration would be best.
Then there's the Middle Coastal Region, which is even weaker. It has no major port of its own, relying totally on the Central Region. In fact, the Middle Coastal Region does have an excellent harbor: Kilwa Kisiwani Island. In medieval times, it was East Africa's largest city, even extending influence as far as Zimbabwe. But it declined and is now just a site of ancient ruins. Currently, East Africa has no plan to build new ports, so it leaves the Middle Coast overshadowed. The existing harbors are enough, with some spare capacity. Still, the Middle Coastal Region might be integrated into the Central Region, whose territory already includes two excellent ports.
East Africa also has a "Great Prairie Region," deep in the interior—originally set up as an independent region mainly because it's huge and teeming with wildlife. And the Upper Lake Malawi Region, where Mbeya is located, now seems too small compared to Mbeya's potential.
Beyond these issues, the biggest problem is the newly occupied northeast and southwest—both complete blank areas. Establishing control can't rely on the army alone, so the government must set up administrative offices. Since East Africa already suffers a shortage of officials, the easiest solution is merging some eastern districts so their personnel can transfer to the new territories. By reshuffling districts internally, they free more administrative staff for newly developed lands—similar to what the Meiji government did in Japan. However, Japan was more extreme because they needed centralized power (against feudal domains), while East Africa does not.
"Sire, indeed we must split or combine some districts with uncertain positioning—for example, Omo Ratte Special Zone (covering the Omo River valley and much of northern Kenya). It used to be our northernmost district, but after we annexed the Gerredi Sultanate, our border now extends to central Somalia, near the Shabeelle River. Apart from local Somali states and tribes, we're not far from British and French colonies on the Red Sea coast. One idea is combining everything north of the Shabeelle, forming a region to handle both tribal and Anglo-French threats," a minister proposed.
"Yes, also the Abyssinian Empire – it's big, populous, with a long history, a potential threat," Felix said.
"My opinion is the exact opposite. In reality, Abyssinia can't threaten us at all, whether in strength or interests. Even if they matched East Africa's power, they still wouldn't provoke us. We hold every advantage: timing, geography, and the support of Germanic settlers. Abyssinia wouldn't fight us over a chunk of southern Ethiopian Highlands," argued von der Leyen.
The core zone of the Abyssinian Empire lies in northern Ethiopia. East Africa's Omo Ratte region spent years infiltrating the southern highlands to defeat the Oromo, Luo, and Cushitic peoples, once linked to Abyssinia, but the empire, having learned harsh lessons from the British, chose to "play dead" while East Africa subdued its vassal tribes. East Africa has no reason to expand farther north, having already removed pure black tribes there, solving 80% of its "northern threat." The Ethiopian Highlands, with an altitude 1,000 meters higher than East Africa's, aren't East Africa's ideal path. East Africa's plateau, at 500–2,000 meters, is a perfect altitude for humans. Going above 2,500 meters means thinner air and altitude sickness—uncomfortable for East African settlers.
That's why East Africa heads southwest, whose highlands closely match East Africa's altitude. For the East African Army, which is used to plateau warfare, it's like "coming home." German immigrants from southern Germany or Austria also feel at home, as even the Bavarian/Austrian highlands average around 500 meters. So southwestern expansions cause minimal altitude stress.
"Yes, we've gained most of what's cheap and easy. We can occupy a few more defensive areas in the north, then pause. Abyssinia is caught between Britain, France, Egypt, and us – obviously, the bigger threats are Britain or even Egypt. They're not about to antagonize us," Siweite said, agreeing.
Abyssinia indeed won't be so foolish. East Africa's northern enclaves in the Omo region are ringed by mountains, hard to attack unless one is well-armed with modern weapons—just as East Africa took it by force of firearms. Now, simply fortifying key passes can stop any Abyssinian incursion. And the empire lacks reason to expand southward—like East Africa needed the Omo's upper waters for security. That southern Ethiopian region has no real economic value. In modern times, that area remains Ethiopia's least populated and poorest.
"Look at Egypt's territory, basically encircling Abyssinia from the south. The sea is the new era's focus, and Abyssinia has no coastline – their future is obvious," someone added.
Already backward, with no direct contact beyond land routes, Ethiopia would lag further without facing Italian colonization.
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