Iboma

Queendom of Iboma Lutendane la'Iboma
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Mvura, hinna" ("May the rain fall")
Anthem: Mama mthe Iboma (Dear Mother Iboma) Royal anthem: Mutenda marethu m'Chikidzi (Our mighty Queen)
Political map of Iboma Political map of Iboma
Location of Iboma Location of Iboma
Capital and largest city	Komodu
Official languages	Ibomian
Ethnic groups	98% Ibomian golden elves
Religion	78% Akronism
Demonym(s)	Ibomian
Government	Unitary matriarchy, theocracy and parliamentary democracy under constitutional monarchy
• Queen	Rutendo III
• Grand Vizier	Rufaro va Asanda
Legislature	National Assembly
• Upper house	Legislative Council
• Lower house	Representative Council
Area
• Total	308,734 km2 (119,203 sq mi)
Population
• Census	57 million
• Density	184.62/km2 (478.2/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	2021 estimate
• Total	$ 2.052 trillion
• Per capita	$36,000
GDP (nominal)	estimate
• Total	$1.026 trillion
• Per capita	$18,000
SDI (2021)	0.834 very high
Currency	Ibomian rawa (IRW)
Time zone	Ibomian Standard Time (UTC -9)
Date format	DD/MM/YYYY
Driving side	right
Internet TLD	.ib

The Queendom of Iboma (Ibomian: Lutendane la'Iboma) or simply Iboma is an independent island nation off the coast of southwest Novaris. Clockwise, starting from the west, it is surrounded by Lapinumbia, Tretrid, Dvalheim, Tiervan and Dvergerland.

Elvine habitation spans thousands of years, with evidence of stone and bone tools used for fishing, hunting and gathering suggesting that ancient elves originated 20,000 years ago. First nomadic, occasionally living in caves (as known by cave markings), they adapted to the temperate climate and the presence of good soil spurred the first signs of Agriculture about 10,000 years ago. Iron age civilizations emerged about 4,000 years ago, followed by bronze age civilizations 1,800 years ago. The industrial age followed in the early 20th century, with Iboma now having a population of 57 million people.

With Akronism as the state religion, a matriarchal society emerged at the head of which is the Queen. Ruling from the capital and largest city, Komodu, the Queen presides over a 1 trillion dollar upper middle income newly industrialized mixed-model economy. With a sizeable military of about 500,000 and a budget hovering around 50 billion dollars, the nation is a regional power.

Etymology and terminology

The name of the country is "Iboma" and the long form of the country’s name is the "Queendom of Iboma". Iboma originates from Ancient Ibomian. While the vowel rendering is still undetermined due to the inability to deduce the pronunciation from the abjad script which the country formerly used, it is possible to deduce that the name's pronunciation shifted over time. The demonym/genitive and adjective is Ibomian (singular: Mubomi and plural: Babomi in Ibomian).

Geography

Iboma is a middle-sized island nation surrounded by Tretrid and Lapinumbia to the west across the Tretridian Sea, the Veridian Union to the north west, Dvalheim to the northeast, Tiervan to the east, Dvergaland to the southeast, and Bersaleria to the south. The nation spans an area of 308,734km² (about 119,203 square miles), with water comprising 3% of surface area and an exclusive economic zone of 120,500km².

The islands broke off from mainland Novaris over a period of several million years due to tectonic plate movements which have resulted in high levels of geological activity. Thus, several volcanoes remain active and the country is prone to minor earthquakes. The rich supply of geothermal energy and abundant rivers has helped the nation become energy independent. Coupled with high rates of volcanic mineral deposition and waterlogged land areas, Iboma has some of the highest rates of fertile soil in the world.

Comprised of 5 islands, the largest is Ibonanengwa (Great Iboma Island) which composes over ⅔ of the surface area. Due to the proximity of its neighbours, it maintains territorial disputes over maritime boundaries with most of them. The nation is rich in biodiversity with about 25% for nature reserves, 35% for agriculture, 10% for urban development, 20% for unprotected wilderness and 10% for mixed use. With four seasons, divided equally across the year, rain falls throughout the year, snow is probable but rare, and temperatures rarely fall below freezing or rise above 35 degrees Celsius.

Politics

The politics of Iboma take place in the framework of a unitary constitutional monarchy representative democracy and theocracy. The Constitution is uncodified, comprising longstanding unwritten political conventions and written laws, most of which emanate from the Covenant of the Twelve Tribes (Chitsingamunyi chaziMbuna z’Tsuminambiri), arguably the founding document of Iboma.

The Queen of Iboma (Mutenda maIboma) is the head of state and commander in chief of the armed forces. Succession is open to all females who in turn undergo a rigorous selection process testing physical, intellectual and interpersonal traits called the Queens Trials (Zikitsimiso zamuTenda). The Queen appoints the High Council (Likonzili l’Hina) which consists the Grand Vizier (Muviziri m’Ra) and Councilors of State (Bakonzili beluNe). The Grand Vizier is the head of government and oversees the running of day-to-day affairs of the government.

The bicameral National Assembly (Limbuyalothe l’Fatsile) consists of the Legislative Council (Likonzili l’Tsingazimiso) and the Representative Council (Likonzili l’Hwemberabanu). The elected Legislative Council wields most of the political power, whilst the Representative Council, which is selected by lottery, has an advisory role in the law-making process. The judicial branch comprises the Supreme Court (Limbiko l’Tsumihulu) and lesser trial and appellate courts. The strong role of the Akronist Church of Iboma (Limashidi l’Akronisti laIboma) in public and political life has entrenched Akronist values, such as matriarchal rule, into legislation and policy.

Military

The Ibomian Armed Forces (Zibutho z’Khakhateyo zaIboma) comprise the military of Iboma. The Queen is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The Councilor of State for Defence advises the High Council and Grand Vizier on defence policy and oversees the running of the State Office for Defence (Lihhovisi l’Ne lakuVikera). The Supreme Commander is the highest-ranked military official and reports to the government.

The military has an annual budget of 51.3 billion SHD (5% of annual GDP and about 15% of the national budget). It has a total force strength of 2.1 million, about 1.6 million of whom are conscripted reservists, with 500,000 comprising the full-force. Men have only been allowed to serve since the 1990s and today only comprise less than 25% of the force. The nation imports military hardware largely from Novarian countries but also has a domestic arms manufacturing sector dominated by the state-owned Ibomian Arms Corporation.

Economy

The economy of Iboma takes place in the framework of a mixed Socialist-free market economic model characterized by state regulation and control of key sectors alongside private property rights and free enterprise. As an upper middle-income newly industrialized emerging economy, it has a GDP of 1.026 trillion SHD and a GDP per capita of 18,000 SHD.

Experiencing growth rates of 6% or more annually, it has leveraged its fertile soil and low-cost highly productive labour to become a major source of foodstuffs and a competitive supplier of low to middle value-added goods. With its primary exporting nations being Novarian, Concordian and Gondwanan nations, it is a major exporter of consumer goods, industrial equipment components and agricultural products like rubber, grains, fruits, and beans. It imports lots of vehicles, military hardware, chemicals and petroleum.

With the national currency, the Ibomian rawa (IRW) worth 58 IRW for 1 SHD, it has a highly stable inflation rate managed by the Ibomian Reserve Bank. Unemployment remains incredibly low, but figures are obscured by high rates of seasonal agricultural labour and high rates of males who stopped looking for work due to domestic responsibilities. Due to the high purchasing power of the Ibomian currency and low cost of goods, people enjoy lifestyles comparable to those in matured industrialised nations. Incredible longevity has made Ibomians more likely to remain traditional result in their slower rate of economic development despite high growth.

Demographics

The country has a total population of 57 million people. Gender distribution is slightly unbalanced, with 23 million males and 24 females. About 55% of people live in urban areas vs 45% in rural areas. Around 2% of the population consists of immigrants. Native golden elves (differentiated from other elves by their brown skin) comprise 98% of the population and consist of ancestral and cultural groups called tribes, the largest of which is the Bangwe tribe which comprises 32% of the population. 78% of the population follows Akronism with the rest following Tunseism and Thaerism. About 12% of the population is irreligious.

The annual population growth rate is around 2%. The average birth rate is 2.7 births per female. Infant mortality sits at 0.3 per 1000 births. Average life expectancy is 140 years. About 34% of the population is considered children, 58% is considered working age adults and 8% consists of retirees. 98% of the population is literate, 95% completed formal education, 84% completed secondary education, 37% completed tertiary education.

98% of people have access to clean running water, 94% have access to a chemical or flush toilet, 88% have access to indoor plumbing and 85% have access to hot piped water. Although extreme or absolute poverty is non-existent, about 4% of the population live below the national poverty line of 300 SHD per month. Social programs such as government feeding schemes, public housing, food subsidies, and income grants alleviate the struggles of the poorest groups. Ibomian is the most widely spoken language with about 99.7% of the population able to speak it. About 67% have proficiency in a second-language especially Codexian, Tieresh, Tretridian and Norgsveldtian.

Society

Main article: Society of Iboma

Ibomian society is matriarchal i.e. dominated by women. This manifests in its political system where most political leaders are women and in economic life where women earn, on average, higher wages than men and occupy most senior corporate roles. Stemming in part from the physically larger character of women, Akronism built the idea of male impurity and aggression into the social fabric and femaleness as it’s counterbalance. Nevertheless, this society eschews many of the social values and norms displayed by other society. In intimate relationships, four types of legal and social relationships exist that are often filled by different people, with women playing a dominant role in each. Child-raising relationships are geared towards assisting one another in raising and providing for a child. Sexual relationships are purely for mutual physical intimacy and pleasure. Birthing relationships, whereby a mate is chosen on the basis in phylogenetic traits to optimize the characteristics of the child. Living partnerships consist of people sharing resources and space – this is usually the most emotionally intimate relationship.

Ibomian society exhibits three key social values: excellence, integrity and freedom. This society values hard work, studious attention to detail and outstanding quality, unfortunately to the exhaustion and social stigma of some. It also values being honest, disciplined and true to one’s self. Above all else, it values freedom and encourages people to express their personalities. Coupled with the fluidity in sexual practices and gender norms, the majority of the population is not exclusively attracted to a single gender and people often form emotionally and physically intimate relationships with several partners. Social interactions call for respecting complex social hierarchies, kindness and courtesy, but may seem distance as people do not like small talk or talking with strangers.