chapter 544: The Kwei River Arch Dam
Planning a colony isn't something done overnight; it requires preparation. But to prevent unexpected developments, the earlier one acts, the better. Colonization is all about shamelessness—grab it first, and the rest can be sorted out later.
That's essentially the playbook of most colonizers, especially the great powers, who are experts at presenting faits accomplis. And due to the colonizer's strength, others simply accept it begrudgingly.
...
Farabana Village is located in the northern part of Matabele Province (Zimbabwe).
As East Africa focused on developing Matabele Province, signs of life began to return there. Of course, given East Africa's national conditions, it still felt sparsely populated, with villages widely spaced apart.
However, areas near cities were the opposite. Cities, as complex systems, require greater division of labor, so the surrounding villages were clustered more tightly.
Though East Africa had vast lands and a sparse population, road construction was not neglected, making transportation relatively convenient. Five or six years ago, not even dirt roads existed—now that was truly difficult. Fortunately, East Africa's climate is mostly savannah, making land development less challenging, particularly for cavalry mobility.
East Africa's horse population wasn't low either—around 800,000. But given its vast grassland regions, that number was still far from enough, especially when compared to Mexico and Brazil, which shared similar tropical savannah climates. Though their grassland areas were smaller, Mexico and Brazil ranked second and third in horse populations in the Americas, with the U.S. in first place.
In East Africa, the number of horses and cattle were on completely different levels—partly due to agricultural policy.
Currently, East Africa promotes cattle farming, as horses—introduced from Eurasia—are less adapted to African climates. However, East Africa was actively breeding its own native horse breed and even imported horses from Mexico and Brazil for that purpose.
Cattle are easier to raise than horses, and cheaper too. Plowing is all about endurance, and during intensive planting seasons, horses lose weight quickly. But as long as cattle are fed enough grass and some grain, they are highly resilient.
Furthermore, East Africa's immigrant population made it necessary to promote the use of plow oxen. Cattle are easier to control. As the saying goes, "leading a bull by the nose" is a thing—controlling a horse, on the other hand, isn't so easy. Horses are temperamental, fragile, and require delicate care—making them costly. Of course, their speed gives them high military value.
Many East African immigrants, to borrow a phrase from the past, came from the "destitute" classes. Cattle and horses were considered valuable assets of landlords and nobility. Only well-off farmers could afford them—and those people rarely emigrated to East Africa.
So most immigrants lacked experience handling large livestock. Fortunately, East Africa practiced collective farming. There were experienced ox-handlers to distribute among groups, and over time, others picked it up. It wasn't a major problem.
Farabana Village was deep inland and hadn't yet fully adopted the policy of replacing slave labor with livestock. However, due to the boom in livestock farming, some animals were allocated there as well—used alongside slaves.
The rural development of Matabele was certainly not on par with the Central Province, but it wasn't worse than other regions.
This was thanks to good timing—Matabele had been designated an industrial province, so the East African government invested heavily here, including building three steel mills, all located along the Central Railway for easy resource coordination.
Matabele's resource distribution was especially interesting—its mineral belt was aligned with the Central Railway, running through the province's center. So once the railway opened, it immediately unlocked Matabele's industrial potential.
With the three steel mills as a foundation, Matabele's other industries developed quite well by East African standards. For example, they no longer needed to import farming tools from other provinces.
While East Africa's main mineral resources were highly concentrated, smaller mines existed elsewhere but hadn't been officially surveyed. East Africa's industrial investments focused on large factories, so in areas without major mines, steel needed to be imported from elsewhere.
In short, East Africa's resource utilization wasn't fully optimized. But that had its benefits—small mines and artisanal workshops lacked technical advantages and had low efficiency. And with a shortage of skilled labor, running large enterprises actually helped with centralized management.
June marked the dry season in Matabele Province, a time when water conservancy projects thrived before the rains returned.
Within Farabana Village was a small-scale water conservancy project: the Kwei River Arch Dam.
The Kwei River Arch Dam was built to retain river water. It wasn't meant to block the river entirely, but rather to establish a medium-height dambed section within the riverbed. In the dry season, this helped prevent water from flowing away. During the rainy season, rising waters would overflow the dam and flow into Zambezi tributaries. It functioned similarly to a reservoir but didn't obstruct the river's course.
"The Kwei River Arch Dam is a key project endorsed by the higher government. The Kwei River is an essential irrigation source for Chisang Township. After three months of hard work, I hereby announce its completion," said the Chisang township mayor, who had come to thank the front-line workers.
"Now during dry seasons, the Kwei River will retain more water in its channel, making water usage much easier. The dam also serves as a bridge, making travel more convenient."
"During the rainy season, river water will flood over it. If you have urgent matters, you can still cross—but be cautious if water levels are high. Do not attempt to cross recklessly."
"Village chief Hans, your village especially needs to be cautious in November—that's when the rainy season begins. The river can rise rapidly. Make sure the children stay away from this area. In fact, all of Kwei River's surrounding areas need to be alert."
Hans replied, "Don't worry, Mayor. I'd already planned to stay cautious. I served in the military and know what East African rainy seasons are like. I've also spent plenty of time educating these new immigrants."
"That's reassuring. Flooding during the rainy season is no joke. Previously, during a river restoration project in Bumisil Village, a sudden rush of upstream water swept away several slaves. Fortunately, they were slaves—otherwise, we'd be facing serious penalties."
Hans: "You have my word—I'll keep a close eye."
"One more thing. Since the dam is built in your village, management responsibilities now fall to you. If major issues arise, report them immediately. Small problems—handle them yourselves. City and township officials will inspect the project quality from time to time. This can't be allowed to fail."
The mayor made it sound serious, but in reality, it wasn't too daunting. East African projects used real materials—this dam could last ten to twenty years with no problems. With proper maintenance, it could last a hundred.
As for government inspections, no one was coming to tiny Farabana Village without a reason. And since the mayor said "from time to time," it might mean once a year—or once every few years.
However, the Kwei River Arch Dam affected the entire river. Though it was an unremarkable stream, it played a vital role in Chisang Township's agriculture. It wasn't just Farabana Village's concern. That's why the mayor placed so much importance on the project.
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