The economic and social development of Seyyid Said to the East Africa during the precolonial period

After transferring his capital to Zanzibar, Seyyid Said made a lot of development both positive and negative as analyzed below;

Economically, he encouraged the growing of crops on Zanzibar and Pemba Islands. He increased the high demand for cloves in Europe and Asia. He encouraged his subjects to grow them who brought revenue to the Zanzibar economy. By growing cloves, Zanzibar became the chief supplier of cloves worldwide which made East Africa to be known in the coloristic circles.
The settlement of Seyyid Said at the coast encouraged the Indian Banyans to settle in Zanzibar and along the coast line. It has to be noted that these were experienced traders, money lenders who gave money to Africans at the coast. Their activities helped to increase on the volume of trade at the coast and in the interior.
They even facilitated the slave trade activities as they exchanged slaves for manufactured goods. He encouraged trade between East Africa cost and outside world. He changed Zanzibar into an international trade center not for only slaves but also for manufactured goods. This encouraged the coming of traders from France, Asia, Germany and Britain.

Zanzibar became an entry port for East Africa as it handled the volume of trade between the rich interior and the outside world. European traders increased the commercial activities at Zanzibar and it became a point of trading activities worldwide.
Seyyid Said boosted trade through signing of commercial treaties with foreign countries like Britain, France, USA, and German. This boosted the diplomatic relations between East Africa and the outside world. He equally signed trade treaties with the interior chiefs in East Africa i.e. he signed a treaty with chief Fundikira granting him passage of his trade caravans to the Congo forests. He also signed a security treaty with Mirambo to guard against the activities of Ruga ruga and Maviti. Through this, He was also to encourage trade with the interior tribes of East Africa
The settlement of Seyyid Said led to the improvement of the security as Indian Ocean waters were monitored effectively. It has to be noted that before he transferred his capital, sea pirates had disrupted trade ships, therefore upon his settlement, he fought and controlled the sea pirates which improved not only the security between the rot of trade at the East Africa coast.

He transformed the standards of commercial relation. He revolutionized trade at the coast. It has to be noted that, trade was previously on barter system but he encouraged and introduced cow i.e. shells, Indian rupees and later coins. Therefore, monitoring trade at the East African coast.
He encouraged Europeans to establish trading posts not only in Zanzibar but in the interior of East Africa e.g. Germans opened up trading posts in Tanga, Dar-el-Salam, Ujiji, Urambo which partly explained the urbanization that developed their after.
He introduced a taxation system that neither to never exist in the trading activities of East Africa. Zanzibar being strategically located at the entry of the East Africa interior, he taxed imports and exports; there by raising revenue. The Indian banyans who were skilled and experienced traders were used by Seyyid Said in the assessment and collection of taxes.
Following the establishment of clove plantations in Zanzibar and Pemba, there was need for cheap labor. Accordingly, Seyyid Said organized to the interior for cheap labor hence slave raid and slave trade respectively in East Africa, East Africa became depopulated as many people were taken to work on the clove plantations. It’s no wonder that later Zanzibar became the leading slave trade center on the East African coastline.

Ironically, later Seyyid Said participated in the abolition of slave trade. he signed the hammertoe treaty of 1844 with Britain which stopped slave trade activities outside his territory. He also provided patrolling ships in order to monitor the slave chiefs on the Indian Ocean waters.
His activities at the coast at Zanzibar in particular also encouraged the Arab and Swahili traders to penetrate into the interior. This led to development of caravan routes into the interior which subsequently turned into good modern transport and communication lines like Tabora, Bagamoyo routes were replaced by the railway line in the later years.
His settlement led to the introduction of new Islamic faith not only the coast but is also to the interior. Islam was spread to the interior through early trade contacts with the inferior tribes i.e. Ibrahim Bin Ahmed was the 1st Arab to arrive in Buganda in 1844 and Kabaka Ssuuna allowed him to preach Islam to the Baganda.
The settlement of Seyyid Said led to the development and spread of Swahili language and culture. This came in form of intermarriages combined with Islamic teachings. It also established Quran schools and to a certain degree sharia law was applied. This was a social revolution and transformation in East Africa.

Seyyid introduced the gun and gun powder to the East Africa communities which increased raids, tribal wars and warfare in the interior of East Africa e.g. the conflicts between the Nyamwezi and the Usamabra, the conflict between Buganda against Bunyoro were all fueled by Seyyid’s distribution of guns and gun powder among the interior societies.
His settlement at the coast helped to end the East Africa coastal conflicts that had made trade insecure. This bright in a period of peace and security to the coastal people and to the related towns that previously fought each other like Kilwa against Mombasa, Sofala, Pemba, Pota that were all bright under one rule of Seyyid Said. Therefore, he brought political stability at the coast of East Africa.
In conclusion; Seyyid Said died in 1856 and had given the Europeans and Americans an impression that he was the ruler of the whole of East Africa yet he was for Zanzibar and Pemba islands only. Before his death, he had divided his empire between his two sons i.e. one taking Zanzibar and the other one Oman/Muscat