African Entrepreneurship Record-Chapter 603 - 281: Expressing Care and Concern

"Welcome, Your Majesty, for personally inspecting our factory!"

The director of the Harare City Chromium Mine, along with the leadership team, personally greeted Constantine’s arrival. At Constantine’s request, the chromium mine continued its operations and did not shut down because of the King’s visit.

Black smoke and the coming and going of transport vehicles indicated the busy nature of this factory located in the city suburbs. Having received prior notice, the workers were working harder than usual.

To Constantine, the scale of this factory was surprisingly much smaller than that of the tobacco factory, which did not align with his perception of industrial and mining enterprises.

Therefore, Constantine asked the Governor of the Matebel Province, Gleining, who accompanied him: "Why is the tobacco factory so much larger than the chromium mine, and with better equipment?"

"Your Majesty, this is due to demand. Currently, the most valuable industry in our Matebel Province is likely the tobacco industry. This refers not to scale but net profit. The tobacco output value of the whole Matebel Province accounts for about thirty percent of East Africa’s domestic market, which is not a small number. It also has growth potential. Benefiting from our province’s unique advantages, this ratio might grow to over sixty percent in the future."

Gleining continued: "As Harare City is the tobacco processing center of Matebel Province, it bears an important responsibility. Our city supplies almost forty-six percent of East Africa’s tobacco export share."

Constantine seemed to understand and asked: "You mean the market dictates the scale of the Harare City Tobacco Factory?"

"Exactly, Your Majesty. Demand determines the scale of investment; otherwise, it’s just a castle in the air. Moreover, the tobacco factory is under the jurisdiction of the industrial department, and we mainly play a supervisory and auxiliary role."

Constantine did not dwell on this issue, but he felt that the size of the chromium mine was still too small, so he mentioned: "Currently, what are the main application areas of chromium? Why is it on my itinerary? Is this resource very important?"

It was no wonder Constantine had these questions. Chromium was discovered in 1797, not much earlier than his own age, and its applications are not usually encountered by the general public.

Gleining said: "This question should be answered by a professional; we aren’t clear on it. So, Director Heern, why don’t you explain?"

Heern, the director of the chromium mine, stepped forward to explain: "Your Majesty, the applications of chromium are indeed not very common. It is generally used for producing compounds, which are somewhat sophisticated, and only professionals usually come into contact with it, so it’s normal for ordinary people not to have heard of it. I can explain briefly.

It was first discovered by the French chemist Vauquelin in the red lead mine in Siberia, Russia. Later, he reduced chromic acid with charcoal to separate chromium in its metallic form for the first time. That same year, chromite was discovered, and most of East Africa’s chromium is in the form of chromite, making it one of Harare City’s advantageous resources.

For instance, our factory uses ore mainly from a small mine southwest of the city for chromium extraction. For Harare City’s chromite reserves, it’s just a drop in the bucket, but it’s already enough for our production needs and use.

In the industry, it is most widely used as a tanning agent in fur production or to increase the hardness of alloys. I’ve only heard of this; specific research seems to be done by Mbeya City’s metal research institute."

Constantine was very satisfied with this explanation, as hearing about the fur industry made him realize its importance.

Fur is a very significant material, important across various fields because there are few substitutes, especially for the cold regions like Russia or Northern Europe.

The situation is much better in East Africa, as it is located in the tropics, but the fur industry in East Africa is also substantial. During the colonial era, fur export was one of East Africa’s important sources of income. Like other East African products such as ivory, it contributed to East Africa’s early development. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Now, after several purges in East Africa, wildlife has decreased significantly, but the corresponding development of East African animal husbandry is flourishing, so the fur business has only grown. However, it mainly focuses on the leather aspect; the East African leather industry has developed excellently.

Constantine asked: "That briefly answers the first question. Why is it on my itinerary?"

Gleining could answer this question, which was unknown to the chromium mine director Heern: "Your Majesty, the industries you inspect are arranged according to the key projects and enterprises in our province. Don’t be fooled by the small scale of the chromium mine; its rank is in the first echelon, mainly because it was particularly mentioned by the Crown Prince."

Ernst, of course, had paid attention because East Africa’s chromium resources are advantageous resources, so it made sense to plan ahead. However, Ernst had concerns: the "chrome plating" process has not yet appeared, or East Africa’s electricity is not cheap, so there is no need to develop it prematurely.

Additionally, chromium smelting is inherently a high-pollution industry, so after considering multiple factors comprehensively, Ernst was not yet planning to vigorously develop related industries.

Anyway, chromite is mainly distributed in East Africa, so it won’t run away in the future. It’s not too late to continue making breakthroughs in research, improving utilization efficiency, enhancing production technology, and addressing pollution treatment issues before making plans.

Heern also said: "The uses of chromium in the industrial field are not yet broad, but with the progress of the era and in physics and chemistry knowledge, its significant use might be stimulated in the future. Harare City is just providing a temporary foothold for this industry, providing reference data, and we indeed have related demands."

"Alright! Let’s first go inside the factory for a visit. You just need to be aware of these professional issues." Constantine said.

Constantine then focused on communicating with the grass-root workers in the factory, understanding their living and working situations.

Although Constantine had been to the tobacco factory before, the work intensity there was not high, so Constantine did not pay much attention to that aspect.

"How much is your monthly salary?"

"Forty-five Rhine Shields, but I received an overtime bonus last month, a total of forty-seven Rhine Shields."

"Is this enough to sustain your life?"

"Of course, Your Majesty. My family currently has five people, including my wife and me and three children, one who just turned six, one four, and one just born, not needing much. We have a decent surplus every month."

"Six years old, they should start school soon!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, according to the law, they must receive compulsory education at seven."

"How do you find compulsory education?"

"It’s satisfactory. Doesn’t the government always promote it? Knowledge is power. I haven’t studied much but find this very true. At least for accounting, writing letters, or reading newspapers, it’s very useful. Moreover, the school also provides a meal, further reducing our burden."

"Indeed, studying is definitely beneficial. Like in East Africa, many things require knowledgeable people to teach. The design of your factory’s buildings, materials, and machinery are the crystallization of knowledge. Future industrial development will also require more intellectuals to participate in national construction."

Constantine casually chatted with the factory workers, inquiring about their well-being, exemplifying the image of a Benevolent Monarch. Meanwhile, reporters from the official newspaper eagerly recorded material, intending to spread it through the newspaper to shape the royal family’s charitable image.