What about pkgconf + autoconf? Might not be the grand unified package manager you're conditioned to look for, but works well and is pretty much universally used

What about pkgconf + autoconf? Might not be the grand unified package manager you're conditioned to look for, but works well and is pretty much universally used. Besides, C and C++ aren't about language ecosystem lock-in, but about creating standardized artifacts (shared libs, static libs, and executables) designed to work and link well in a polyglot environment (well C++ maybe less so with its symbol mangling/typesafe linkage).