Northern UtopiaBoard

OOC:This is a little introduction to Coandawe, giving an brief summary of where the nation is now, and the long-term strategic potential/overall trends in current affairs.

Anyone from within my region (Northern Utopia) and but also from others is absolutely free to send me telegrams with anything from potential trade talks, to offers of foreign aid, NGO/charity entry, resource extracting rights, to RP ideas. I really encourage this and if you're not sure about an idea involving the nation, just get in touch!

A brief introduction to Coandawe

Coandawe is a country full of divides and disparities, disputes and dilemmas. Yet it is also filled with potential; both strategically, and economically. Most certainly, it is a developing nation, seeing rapid economic growth and population expansion, most clearly embodied by the gradual transition in some parts of the country from an agrarian economy, to an industrial one, and in some areas, to a services-based economy. Urbanisation, sectarian violence, corruption, inequalities, and external interference are all current major trends.

Some History

Coandawe is a relatively recently formed nation, after the Great War it began to gain ever greater autonomy, before eventually undergoing a long, and occasionally bloody process of decolonisation from its final overlord. At one point, Coandawe was divided by four separate colonial powers, often disregarding local realities such as the ethnic population of areas, historical commercial routes, and tribal borders. Even after decolonisation, the former colonial powers continued to influence the development of commerce, institutions, and governance in the country, and Coandawe became yet another scene in the competition for resources, influence, and soft power in a bipolar global order.
Today, the large variety of multinational corporations (MNCs), private military companies (PMCs), charities, faith-based organisations (FBOs), and other non-government organisations (NGOs) embody the extensive foreign influence exerted in the nation.

Geography and Natural Resources

Due to its size, Coandawe has a variety of terrains, and is in some areas relatively rich in natural resources, though conflict, corruption, weak institutions, and poor infrastructure and investment limit their benefit to locals.
The rivers Andahar, Mhir, and Lotac go through the country, providing most of the water for hygiene, irrigation, and drinking in the country areas that are not coastal- part of the eastern boundary is coastal. The further northwest one heads in the country as an overall trend, the more hilly, undulating, and mountainous it becomes, whilst the further from the west, particularly towards the south, the land is more arid.

A fault line does run near the southern border yet there have been few recorded major earthquakes. Only one tsunami ever has struck Coandawe according to records, which was during the Cold War. This saw a colonial cruiser docking to take in supplies swept into the customs office, and the temporary poverty, stretching of state resources, and weakness of the colonial military led to an outbreak of major rioting which was followed by a period of repression.

In terms of food production, the flood plains of the Mhir are the most highly developed and productive, forming a grain basket for much of the country. In less fertile and more arid areas, herds of livestock are kept, whilst in some areas extensive savannah is relatively untamed (and most lucrative for ecotourism and safaris). Poor harvests or excessive floods have however tended to lead to greater conflict or economic depression, and food security is an issue.

Wood is very much in short supply when considering the demands of the population, however where Coandawe lacks in wood, and also cheap coal, it makes up for with its other resources. Deposits of lithium, bauxite, and copper are all extremely valuable, particularly to foreign interests, whilst considerable iron ore deposits predominantly satisfy domestic needs. A couple of areas are known to hold low quality uranium, and some oil deposits have been found. It is estimated that some 75% of Coandawe's oil reserves have yet to be exploited or even discovered yet. Finally, diamonds and gold are also lucrative commodities Coandawe holds. The tributaries of the Lotac are extensively panned for gold, whilst to the north of the Andahar, in the foothills of the Andahari mountains, are some deposits of diamonds.
Fishing stocks are fast being depleted yet some rare breeds fetch a lucrative price.
The great extent of wildlife in many areas, and some spots of stunning beauty offer fantastic opportunities for the rapidly expanding, though sometimes dangerous and corrupt tourism industry. Security concerns of course limit the potential there.

Language

Coandawe has two main languages, English, and Coandi, the latter a mix of English, French, and a number of ethnic languages, although as many as thirty languages, and four hundred dialects are also spoken in the country.

Ethnicity

In terms of ethnicity, there is a small settler/mixed heritage minority, who tend to work extensively with foreign powers and companies operating in the country. They represent around 2% of the population, whilst there are three other major ethnic groups that dominate the population. The Hisuoq make up around 29% of the population, and are predominantly Christians, living in agricultural communities and the cities. The often nomadic Cerbar constitute some 23% of the population, and are mostly Muslims. The Juoroth people live in a number of the resource rich southern lands in mostly rural communities, and represent a further 16% of the population, and mostly follow tribal/spiritualist religions. The remaining 30% come from eight other significant ethnic groups, and a plethora of strong local identities.

Religion

In terms of religion, Islam (mostly Sunni), Christianity (of many denominations), and local religion dominate the country. Though there are many who do not necessarily practice their religions, they form a strong part of identity, alongside ethnicity, and few identify as atheists. Though the constitution, drafted by the first administration immediately after decolonisation prevents Coandawe being ruled as a theocracy, many sub-regions and localities follow religious laws, and resist secular institutions, whilst religion in society as a whole is seen as a foundation for social order, stability, and identity.

Governance and domestic politics

Nominally, Coandawe is a Democratic Republic, although in practice this is not universally even known, let alone fully implemented. Many of the political parties are firmly rooted in local identities, whilst electoral fraud, non-voting, and political violence are relatively common. Of course this varies extensively, as with most things in Coandawe from freedom to opportunity to poverty, and to extremism and insecurity.

Coandawe, owing primarily due to ethno-linguistic-religious divides, as well as the retention of tribal identity in some areas, is quite extensively decentralised. There are many overlapping laws, districts, municipalities, and unofficial dividing borders. A lack of centralisation, crucially in the strength of national institutions, public services, and state apparatus such as the Armed Forces leads to many divides, instability, and limitations to prosperity. However attempts to centralise often meet with opposition, difficulty, or passivity, and will require a strong will or use of force to see success.

State provision, access to public services, and the extent of welfare are often relatively devolved, and most certainly are not universal across the country.

Foreign Influence

Though Coandawe is in no official regional bloc and has no extensive trade deals with any nation, many countries and companies do trade in, through, and with Coandawe, often relatively informally. Mining rights, exclusive economic zones, free ports, and tariff circumventions are all major assets that many seek to acquire, or exclusive zones of charitable provision are surprisingly rumoured of.
A number of foreign charities, NGOs, FBOs, PMCs, and MNCs operate in the country, these can be humanitarian, proselyting, unifying, or dividing in nature, and occasionally clash with one another's interests when forming part of Great Power politics.

Societal divides

To go over some mentioned, some of the major disparities in the country include: ethnicity, religion, tribal identity, rural versus urban, suburban vs inner city, and in wealth. Attempts to address these are multi-faceted, expensive, and potentially dangerous, yet their effects can be incredibly powerful, particularly when experienced charities and NGOs are involved.

Current Issues

This non-comprehensive list of issues may sound very extensive, but in every problem, there is a potential for growth, learning, and dynamic solutions. They most certainly are not universal, and vary region by region according to geography, ethnicity, wealth concentration, and even within districts of the same city.

Food insecurity: poor harvests, flooding, conflict, limited infrastructure and technology, and soil erosion all contribute to the possibility for food shortages, or high food prices. This is exacerbated by the growing population.

Water shortages: Over-extraction, competing use for agriculture and livestock, high urban demand, and high temperatures all contribute to the potential for drought, water shortages, and high prices. This has the knock on effect of leading to people drinking unclean water.

Housing quality: Depending on definitions and estimations, approximately a 20-40% of the urban population live in slums. A lack of resources like wood and stone mean that many houses are improvised or constructed with imported bricks/other materials, or with mud bricks of varying quality. The slums are often areas of very limited welfare, poor hygiene and health, crime, and general deprivation.

Weak state institutions: Ethnic rivalries, and a natural trend towards decentralisation makes it hard for national initiatives to be carried out without extensive compromise, concessions, and exemptions. Further it exacerbates the potential for radicalisation, extremism, tax avoidance, and political distrust. One of the prime examples is the lack of a state monopoly on violence which limits the ability to hinder crime, and both encourages the view of necessity for alternative security such as self-armament, minor militias, vigilantes, and private security.

Poor democracy: Coandawe does not have much experience with democracy, and its people have many more concerns. In terms of democracy and freedoms, Coandawe has a long way to go.

Border security: Porous borders, limited customs officials and border guard numbers, and ethnic/tribal overlap over official borders hinders Coandawean security, enabling smuggling, the black market, illegal immigration, and insecurity for border communities.

Inequality of the Law: Despite an overall framework of national laws, regional variations, religious courts of law, informal tribal settling of disputes, and a small judiciary and prison system leads to low rates of official prosecution, high rates of reoffending, and unequal application of the laws, themselves not always the same as a whole. Vigilantes anyone?

The Informal Economy: Localism; weak institutions; porous borders; an influx of foreign currency and goods; and resource shortages. These all contribute towards the creation of an informal economy. This ranges from a relatively lucrative black market, to bartering occurring, to private trading being extensive (without receipts and thus tax), tax revenue, and a weak currency. The mixture of old colonial divisions, and a limited level of recollection means that in some areas, currency dating back almost a century ago remain legal tender, even longer if old coins are traded based on metal value. These factors all limit government income, itself weakening the ability of government to improve the situation/counter various issues.

Refugees: Though some actually do attempt to leave Coandawe as asylum seekers, many many more come to Coandawe as an easily reachable and often easily enterable nation to claim asylum. Some 100,000 claim or wish to claim asylum, whilst a staggering two and a half million refugees currently reside in the country. This of course requires major maintenance, is a cause of political friction, and is highly alarming considering the implications of a reversal of policy or deterioration of the situation.

Overall Trends, the Potential, and Strategic Relevance of Coandawe

Coandawe is most certainly a developing nation. It is however considered to be one of the primary contenders for the largest growth potential regionally, with an abundance of resources, and expanding population, social contexts and state institutions which can seemingly only be improved, and globalisation of services and markets all aiding this.
However despite its potential, a coinciding of large events and trends could destabilise the country, turning it into a hotbed of crime, radicalisation, and a cause for a refugee crisis.
Further, its economic significance; possession of vital, rare, or strategic resources; and relatively strategic location with entrance to three major rivers, local dominance of a sea lane; and potential to host chaos make it a scene for a power politics and influence wars.

In effect, there is more than enough to cause a Scramble for Coandawe.