1998 SOUTHERN AFRICA ECONOMIC ... - National Treasury

c u rre n t ly holds 129 seats in Parliament,while RENAMO has 112
and the Uniao Democrática two. The next general elections are
scheduled for 1999.
Maputo,capital of Mozambique.
G E N E R A L I N F O R M AT I O N
G e og r ap hy and Po p u l a t i o n
M o z a m b i q u e ’s geographical area covers 799,380 km 2 in south
eastern A f r i c a , and borders Malaw i , South A f r i c a , S w a z i l a n d ,
Ta n z a n i a , Zambia and Zimbabwe. The cap i t a l , M ap u t o, h a s
ap p rox i m a t e ly 1 m inhabitants.
The size of the total population is about 15.7 m, with an ave r a g e
a n nual growth rate of 2.6 perc e n t . About 66.4 percent of the
population is under the age of 25 ye a r s ,and life expectancy at
b i rth was 45.5 years in 1997. The literacy rate is 21 perc e n t
among women and slightly higher for men, 33 perc e n t .
Mozambique is ranked no 166 out of 175 countries in the
UNDP 1997 human development index (HDI) 1 ) which puts it
s l i g h t ly ahead of countries like Ethiopia (170) and Guinea (167),
and just behind Malawi (161). It should be noted howeve r, t h a t
the ranking is based on figures from 1994. Mozambique has
made considerable pro g ress since then and their ranking is
c o n s e q u e n t ly like ly to improve in the coming ye a r s .
The official language is Po rt u g u e s e, and there are around 10
local languages. The use of English is increasing in Map u t o.
Political Ove rv i ew
After some twenty years of civil war, the General Pe a c e
A g reement was signed between the warring Mozambican
p a rt i e s ,FRELIMO and RENAMO,in October 1992. The country
held its first general elections two years later, in October 1994.
The FRELIMO Presidential candidate Mr Joaquim Chissano,
obtained 53.3 percent of the vo t e s , fo l l owed by RENAMO’s
l e a d e r, Mr A fonso Dhlakama, with 33.7 perc e n t . F R E L I M O
1) The ranking, d evised by the United Nations Development Pro g r a m m e
( U N D P ) ,is based on life expectancy at birt h , adult literacy, combined primary,
s e c o n d a ry and tert i a ry education enrolment and adjusted real GDP per cap i t a .
Sectoral Description
The distribution of GDP by sector was as fo l l ows in 1995:
tourism and service 52.2 perc e n t , a g r i c u l t u re 22.8 perc e n t ,
i n d u s t ry and fisheries 11.6 percent and “others” 13.4 perc e n t .
The tourism potential in Mozambique is perhaps one of the
c o u n t ry ’s most valuable assets. The industry is growing rap i d ly
and a number of new hotel construction and/or re h a b i l i t a t i o n
p rojects are being undert a ke n .Mozambique offers 2,500 km of
c o a s t l i n e, featuring unspoilt beaches and coral reef off-shore
i s l a n d s .T h e re are an increasing number of ecotourism ve n t u re s ,
the most we l l - k n own and largest being the “ B l a n c h a rd ”
d evelopment of a game park outside Map u t o. The project has
commenced with the fencing of the area and restocking of
a n i m a l s . The construction of three hotels/lodges is scheduled
for 1998. Mozambique also attracts an increasing number of
s c u b a - d i ve r s . Popular spots are Ponta Malongane and Po n t a
d ’ O u ro in the ve ry south of the country and the islands along
the coast.
A g r i c u l t u re is an important sector of the Mozambican economy,
as it employs more than 80 percent of the wo r k fo rce and
contributes some 23 percent to GDP. The availability of go o d
land and grazing suitable for cattle and other livestock farming
activities should see significant growth in the agricultural sector
in the future. Mozambique has 36 m ha of arable land (less than
a third of which are pre s e n t ly in use) and ample water
re s o u rc e s . C rops best suited to Mozambique include maize,
w h e a t , s u n f l owe r, s oy a , p e a nu t s , c o t t o n , s i s a l , c a s h ew nu t s ,
t o b a c c o, t e a ,c o p r a , sugar cane, c i t r u s ,r i c e,and tropical fruits and
ve g e t a b l e s .
The industrial sector in Mozambique is curre n t ly undergo i n g
considerable rationalisation and re h a b i l i t a t i o n , and the
government intends to pursue an active industrial policy to
assist private sector initiative s . I nvestments in the manu f a c t u r i n g
sector equalled 33 percent of total investments in 1996-97, a n d
as the privatisation programme is being implemented,
p roduction is grow i n g . Industrial production grew by 10.5
p e rcent in 1995, 6.5 percent in 1996 and is expected to re m a i n
at that level for 1997. Some textile companies are curre n t ly
being rehabilitates and export-oriented production is expected
to commence during 1998-2002.
The fishing industry contributes gre a t ly to the export earnings
of Mozambique. The country is we l l - k n own for the quality of
its fish and seafo o d , yet the fisheries sector is still re l a t i ve ly
u n d eve l o p e d . P r awns and tuna are the main export pro d u c t s .
These are harvested mainly by industrial companies, o f t e n
t h rough joint-ve n t u res between state-owned companies and
J ap a n e s e, Spanish and South African companies. An estimated
80,000 Mozambican are engaged in the fishing industry, 3 5
p e rcent of which are subsistence fishermen.
Mozambique is rich in mineral re s o u rces including coal, n a t u r a l
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