Belgian bases in East Africa
A forgotten page from Belgian colonialism in Africa
As the last Belgian manager of the Belbases, I unexpectedly became the custodian of a forgotten chapter of colonial history.
When I took over as CEO of Agence Maritime Internationale (AMI) in Tanzania, I discovered these remnants of a long-passed era. Hidden in the shadows of history, the Belbases stood as silent witnesses to a century of geopolitical shifts.
In sharing this story, I aim not only to shed light on this overlooked legacy but also to pay tribute to the hundreds of thousands of porters and local soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the brutal East African campaigns of World War I. Their contribution remains largely unrecognized, yet they shaped the fate of Central Africa and beyond.