Business Profile
Economy
Agriculture, which employs 80 per cent of the working population, is the mainstay of the economy. Cash crops include cashew nuts (see below), tea, sugar, sisal, maize, cotton, copra, oil seeds and some citrus fruit. Forestry is increasing in importance. Fishing is both an important source of food and a vital export earner. Manufacturing industry produces one quarter of GDP: products include processed foods, textiles, drinks, cement and fertiliser. Mining operations produce coal, salt, bauxite, gemstones and marble. In addition, natural gas is extracted from onshore fields and piped to South Africa.
Following the end of the debilitating civil war in 1994, the Mozambican economy picked up strongly over the next five years, recording annual growth of around 10 per cent (13 per cent in 2001), although at the price of high inflation (around 35 per cent) at times. Mozambique was also deemed eligible for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, which was agreed by major donors in 1999 and lifted some of the country’s substantial debt burden. However, much of Mozambique’s fragile economic progress was undone by the devastating floods of 2000. Since then the economy has been further undermined by drought and trade-related disputes over the issue of subsidies to farmers. A number of African countries complain of the international financial community’s insistence that they remove subsidies while Western countries continue to support their own agricultural sector. (Mozambique points to the near-collapse of its once thriving cashew nut industry.) In 2002, Mozambique was once again obliged to call upon its aid donors for emergency food aid. Mozambique is a member of the Southern African Development Conference. South Africa, the USA and Portugal are Mozambique’s most important trading partners.
Business
Safari suits are advised for the hot season, while lightweight suits or jackets should be worn for the rest of the year. Prior appointments are recommended. A knowledge of Portuguese is normally necessary for business dealings, although there are translation facilities available in Maputo. January is the main holiday month, so this should be avoided for business trips. Office hours: Mon-Fri 0730-1230 and 1400-1730.
Commercial Information
The following organisation can offer advice: Câmara de Comércio de Moçambique, CP 1836, Rua Mateus Sansão Mutemba 452, Maputo (tel: (1) 491 970; fax: (1) 490 428).
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