"Beginning this February, ships on eastern African routes from Britain and other countries were advised to dock at Natal Port or Maputo Port whenever possible. The government had already partnered with eleven major global shipping companies to prepare for possible regional conflicts and safeguard the property of British and other foreign citizens."
"Britain's Madim Construction Company planned to invest 120,000 pounds in the first phase of Maputo Port, improving its service standards and berthing capacity for passing vessels. Maputo was expected to become a newly rising port with first-rate construction standards in Africa, replacing Dar es Salaam and Mombasa's status in the region and building the finest world-class harbor in 'East Africa.'"
By the end of 1879, Britain had shifted its attention to Afghanistan, yet it had not forgotten to dig a pit for East Africa. Since it could not count on military means, it naturally sought to make up for it economically.
Without question, after excluding the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, seventy percent of the remaining value of the eastern African shipping routes was monopolized by the two ports of Dar es Salaam and Mombasa. The newly planned New Hamburg Port was also set to follow the model of the two open ports. Its infrastructure already rivaled that of Maputo and Natal, with signs of surpassing them.
Britain had originally wanted to draw the French in, because France's Madagascar colony also wielded considerable influence in the Mozambique Channel.
But the French had not taken the bait. East Africa and France had no direct conflict of interests. As long as East Africa had no designs on Madagascar, there was a foundation for cooperation between them.
France did have a history of aiding the United States against Britain, so it was already good enough that the French did