Arthur found that almost all Colonies undergoing native development shared a common flaw, which was their lag in education and medical care.
But upon closer consideration, it seemed an inevitable issue within the work of native development.
One must understand that neither medical care nor education could be established in a short period of time; it required the local government to expend massive funds, manpower, and resources, as well as a great deal of time.
Currently, in the entirety of Australasia, the regions that were doing relatively well in education and medical care were mainly Australia and New Zealand, while other regions could only be described as average, or even somewhat backward.
This was an unavoidable circumstance. Out of around 50 universities in the whole of Australasia, the Australian and New Zealand regions alone boasted 43.
The remaining seven, including New Guinea, Dili, Sulawesi, Java, Sumatra, and a multitude of Colonies comprised of archipelagos and islands, could only claim seven universities in total, starkly proving the huge disparity in education between regions.
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This vast gap could not be bridged in a short span of time unless Arthur was willing to dedicate all available funds and efforts to fill it.
However, the development of the government also demanded Arthur’s considerable energy and devotion; naturally, he could not possibly focus all his attention on the Colonies’ education projects.
After all, the Native Land was of utmost importance, a prerequisite to the grand development of Australasia.
Given such circumstances, Arthur could only strive to consider each Colony’s current situation in the education sector, hoping to garner some support from the Kingdom Government for All States.
More importantly, the States had to rely on their own efforts, such as the development plans drawn up by Yuli.
In the educational and medical development plan created by Governor Yuli for Java Island, the construction of universities and large hospitals was the most central component.
Governor Yuli predicted that within the next eight years, a total of three universities and two major hospitals would be constructed, rivalling those in the Australian Region in scale.
Although this was a challenging undertaking, Governor Yuli was very confident. After all, it was merely a matter of funds consumption, to which Java Island, rich in rubber and food production, might well afford.
At the Java State government, Arthur affirmed Governor Yuli’s development plan and expressed that the government would provide support, covering one-third of the Total Fiscal Expenditure for the development plan of Java State.
And that one-third was not to be underestimated. According to Governor Yuli’s development plan, one-third of the Total Expenditure would be at least 5 million Australian dollars or even more.
Moreover, the support Arthur mentioned included the force of university faculty, teaching and research equipment, medical talents, and medical devices—all invaluable resources that the Java State government could not buy with money.
The situation on Sumatra Island was not much different from that of Java. Sumatra boasted an even larger area and was closer to the Malacca Strait.
Compared to Java Island, which focused on economic development, Sumatra Island, for the current Australasia, was more like the bridgehead of the Northern frontier and the front line for controlling the Malacca Strait.
Should Britain encounter difficulties, Arthur would attempt to take over Britain’s Strait Colony and gain complete control of the Malacca Strait.
But under current circumstances, unless World War II broke out, it was highly unlikely that the powerful British would fall into hardship.
Of course, internal turmoil could be a factor. But for the British Empire to be crippled by internal strife today, besides the Indians’ fierce resistance, Colonies in other regions, including the American People, would need to stir up some trouble as well.
For Arthur and Australasia at the moment, the strength of the British had certain advantages.
Certainly, the premise was that the British couldn’t become too powerful. A strong Britain aligned with Australasia’s interests, but if it were a Britain that even a united front of other nations couldn’t withstand, that would not be good news for Australasia either.
After this tour, Arthur gained a clearer picture of the progress of native development in various regions of Southeast Asia.
Although native development had achieved some initial success, these Colonies engaged in native development still had a long way to go compared to the Australian and New Zealand regions.
Of course, a major reason was the relatively low Population of Australasia, making it challenging to develop these regions thoroughly.
Looking at the progress of native development, it was clear that in 30 years, these Colonies would not develop very well and would hardly develop much of their areas.
Full development of these regions would require a population of at least over two hundred million, which might be beyond Arthur’s reign.
However, by bequeathing such expansive Territory to future Monarchs, Arthur felt he had fulfilled his duty.
Even without further territorial expansion, the present land area was more than sufficient for Australasia’s development plans for the next 200 years.
Until the Population reached five hundred million, Australasia’s land area was ample; there was no need to worry about resource depletion or food supply.
Especially after acquiring land in the tropical region of Southeast Asia, where crops could be harvested thrice a year, it was an excellent production area for Grain.
Arthur left Saint Arthur Castle on August 1st, only to return in mid-September. Experience more tales on freewebnovel
It was an unavoidable matter. With such an immense Territory of Australasia, inspecting just a few regions required a time span measured in months at the least.