Introduction:
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Almost five centuries as a Portuguese colony came to a close with independence in 1975. Large-scale emigration by whites, economic dependence on South Africa, a severe drought, and a prolonged civil war hindered the country's development. The ruling Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) party formally abandoned Marxism in 1989, and a new constitution the following year provided for multiparty elections and a free market economy. A UN-negotiated peace agreement between FRELIMO and rebel Mozambique National Resistance (RENAMO) forces ended the fighting in 1992. In December 2004, Mozambique underwent a delicate transition as Joaquim CHISSANO stepped down after 18 years in office. His newly elected successor, Armando Emilio GUEBUZA, has promised to continue the sound economic policies that have encouraged foreign investment. |
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Geography
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Climate
MAPUTO 25 91 S, 32 56 E, 144 feet (44 meters) above sea level.
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BEIRA 19 80 S, 34 90 E, 52 feet (16 meters) above sea level.
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PEMBA 12 96 S, 40 50 E, 164 feet (50 meters) above sea level.
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LICHINGA 13 28 S, 35 25 E, 4478 feet (1365 meters) above sea level.
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QUELIMANE 17 88 S, 36 88 E, 52 feet (16 meters) above sea level.
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CHICAULACUALA 22 8 S, 31 68 E, 1482 feet (452 meters) above sea level.
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NAMPULA 15 10 S, 39 28 E, 1446 feet (441 meters) above sea level.
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PEOPLE
Mozambique's major ethnic groups encompass numerous subgroups with diverse
languages, dialects, cultures, and histories. Many are linked to similar ethnic
groups living in neighboring countries. The north-central provinces of Zambezia
and Nampula are the most populous, with about 45% of the population. The
estimated 4 million Makua are the dominant group in the northern part of the
country--the Sena and Ndau are prominent in the Zambezi valley, and the Tsonga
and Shangaan dominate in southern Mozambique.
Despite the influence of Islamic coastal traders and European colonizers, the
people of Mozambique have largely retained an indigenous culture based on
small-scale agriculture. Mozambique's most highly developed art forms are wood
sculpture, for which the Makonde in northern Mozambique are particularly
renowned, and dance. The middle and upper classes continue to be heavily
influenced by the Portuguese colonial and linguistic heritage.
During the colonial era, Christian missionaries were active in Mozambique, and
many foreign clergy remain in the country. According to the national census,
about 40% of the population is Christian, at least 20% is Muslim, and the
remainder adheres to traditional beliefs.
Under the colonial regime, educational opportunities for black Mozambicans were
limited, and 93% of that population was illiterate. In fact, most of today's
political leaders were educated in missionary schools. After independence, the
government placed a high priority on expanding education, which reduced the
illiteracy rate to about two-thirds as primary school enrollment increased.
Unfortunately, in recent years school construction and teacher training
enrollments have not kept up with population increases. With post-war
enrollments reaching all-time highs, the quality of education has suffered.
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HISTORY
Mozambique's first inhabitants were San hunter and gatherers, ancestors of the
Khoisani peoples. Between the first and fourth centuries AD, waves of
Bantu-speaking peoples migrated from the north through the Zambezi River valley
and then gradually into the plateau and coastal areas. The Bantu were farmers
and ironworkers.
When Portuguese explorers reached Mozambique in 1498, Arab trading settlements
had existed along the coast and outlying islands for several centuries. From
about 1500, Portuguese trading posts and forts became regular ports of call on
the new route to the east. Later, traders and prospectors penetrated the
interior regions seeking gold and slaves. Although Portuguese influence
gradually expanded, its power was limited and exercised through individual
settlers who were granted extensive autonomy. As a result, investment lagged
while Lisbon devoted itself to the more lucrative trade with India and the Far
East and to the colonization of Brazil.
By the early 20th century the Portuguese had shifted the administration of much
of the country to large private companies, controlled and financed mostly by the
British, which established railroad lines to neighboring countries and supplied
cheap--often forced--African labor to the mines and plantations of the nearby
British colonies and South Africa. Because policies were designed to benefit
white settlers and the Portuguese homeland, little attention was paid to
Mozambique's national integration, its economic infrastructure, or the skills of
its population.
After World War II, while many European nations were granting independence to
their colonies, Portugal clung to the concept that Mozambique and other
Portuguese possessions were overseas provinces of the mother country, and
emigration to the colonies soared. Mozambique's Portuguese population at the
time of independence was about 250,000. The drive for Mozambican independence
developed apace, and in 1962 several anti-colonial political groups formed the
Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO), which initiated an armed
campaign against Portuguese colonial rule in September 1964. After 10 years of
sporadic warfare and major political changes in Portugal, Mozambique became
independent on June 25, 1975.
The last 30 years of Mozambique's history have reflected political developments
elsewhere in the 20th century. Following the April 1974 coup in Lisbon,
Portuguese colonialism collapsed. In Mozambique, the military decision to
withdraw occurred within the context of a decade of armed anti-colonial
struggle, initially led by American-educated Eduardo Mondlane, who was
assassinated in 1969. When independence was achieved in 1975, the leaders of
FRELIMO's military campaign rapidly established a one-party state allied to the
Soviet bloc and outlawed rival political activity. FRELIMO eliminated political
pluralism, religious educational institutions, and the role of traditional
authorities.
The new government gave shelter and support to South African (ANC) and
Zimbabwean (ZANU) liberation movements while the governments of first Rhodesia
and later apartheid South Africa fostered and financed an armed rebel movement
in central Mozambique called the Mozambican National Resistance (RENAMO). Civil
war, sabotage from neighboring states, and economic collapse characterized the
first decade of Mozambican independence. Also marking this period were the mass
exodus of Portuguese nationals, weak infrastructure, nationalization, and
economic mismanagement. During most of the civil war, the government was unable
to exercise effective control outside of urban areas, many of which were cut off
from the capital. An estimated 1 million Mozambicans perished during the civil
war, 1.7 million took refuge in neighboring states, and several million more
were internally displaced. In the third FRELIMO party congress in 1983,
President Samora Machel conceded the failure of socialism and the need for major
political and economic reforms. He died, along with several advisers, in a
suspicious 1986 plane crash.
His successor, Joaquim Chissano, continued the reforms and began peace talks
with RENAMO. The new constitution enacted in 1990 provided for a multi-party
political system, market-based economy, and free elections. The civil war ended
in October 1992 with the Rome General Peace Accords. Under supervision of the
ONUMOZ peacekeeping force of the United Nations, peace returned to Mozambique.
By mid-1995 the more than 1.7 million Mozambican refugees who had sought asylum
in neighboring Malawi, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Zambia, Tanzania, and South Africa
as a result of war and drought had returned, as part of the largest repatriation
witnessed in Sub-Saharan Africa. Additionally, a further estimated 4 million
internally displaced people returned to their areas of origin.
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
Mozambique is a multi-party democracy under the 1990 constitution. The executive
branch comprises a president, prime minister, and Council of Ministers. There is
a National Assembly and municipal assemblies. The judiciary comprises a Supreme
Court and provincial, district, and municipal courts. Suffrage is universal at
18.
In 1994 the country held its first democratic elections. Joaquim Chissano was
elected President with 53% of the vote, and a 250-member National Assembly was
voted in with 129 FRELIMO deputies, 112 RENAMO deputies, and 9 representatives
of three smaller parties that formed the Democratic Union (UD). Since its
formation in 1994, the National Assembly has made some progress in becoming a
body increasingly more independent of the executive. By 1999, more than one-half
(53%) of the legislation passed originated in the Assembly.
After some delays, in 1998 the country held its first local elections to provide
for local representation and some budgetary authority at the municipal level.
The principal opposition party, RENAMO, boycotted the local elections, citing
flaws in the registration process. Independent slates contested the elections
and won seats in municipal assemblies. Turnout was very low.
In the aftermath of the 1998 local elections, the government resolved to make
more accommodations to the opposition's procedural concerns for the second round
of multiparty national elections in 1999. Working through the National Assembly,
the electoral law was rewritten and passed by consensus in December 1998.
Financed largely by international donors, a very successful voter registration
was conducted from July to September 1999, providing voter registration cards to
85% of the potential electorate (more than 7 million voters).
The second general elections were held December 3-5, 1999, with high voter
turnout. International and domestic observers agreed that the voting process was
well organized and went smoothly. Both the opposition and observers subsequently
cited flaws in the tabulation process that, had they not occurred, might have
changed the outcome. In the end, however, international and domestic observers
concluded that the close result of the vote reflected the will of the people.
President Chissano won the presidency with a margin of 4% points over the
RENAMO-Electoral Union coalition candidate, Afonso Dhlakama, and began his
5-year term in January 2000. FRELIMO increased its majority in the National
Assembly with 133 out of 250 seats. RENAMO-UE coalition won 116 seats, one went
independent, and no third parties are represented.
The opposition coalition did not accept the National Election Commission's
results of the presidential vote and filed a formal complaint to the Supreme
Court. One month after the voting, the court dismissed the opposition's
challenge and validated the election results. The opposition did not file a
complaint about the results of the legislative vote.
The second local elections, involving 33 municipalities with some 2.4 million
registered voters, took place in November 2003. This was the first time that
FRELIMO, RENAMO-UE, and independent parties competed without significant
boycotts. The 24% turnout was well above the 15% turnout in the first municipal
elections. FRELIMO won 28 mayoral positions and the majority in 29 municipal
assemblies, while RENAMO won 5 mayoral positions and the majority in 4 municipal
assemblies. The voting was conducted in an orderly fashion without violent
incidents. However, the period immediately after the elections was marked by
objections about voter and candidate registration and vote tabulation, as well
as calls for greater transparency.
In May 2004, the government approved a new general elections law that contained
innovations based on the experience of the 2003 municipal elections.
The third general elections occurred on December 1-2, 2004. FRELIMO candidate
Armando Guebuza won with 64% of the popular vote. His opponent, Afonso Dhlakama
of RENAMO, received 32% of the popular vote. The estimated 44% turnout was well
below the almost 70% turnout in the 1999 general elections. FRELIMO won 160
seats in Parliament. A coalition of RENAMO and several small parties won the 90
remaining seats. Armando Guebuza was inaugurated as the President of Mozambique
on February 2, 2005. The government has scheduled provincial and municipal
elections in 2008, and presidential and parliamentary elections in 2009.
Principal Government Officials
President--Armando Guebuza
Prime Minister--Luisa Diogo
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation--Alcinda Abreu
Minister of Finance--Manuel Chang
Minister of National Defense--Tobias Dai
Minister of the Interior--Jose Pacheco
Minister of Industry and Commerce--Antonio Fernando
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ECONOMY
Macroeconomic Review
Alleviating poverty. At the end of the civil war in 1992, Mozambique ranked
among the poorest countries in the world. It still ranks among the least
developed nations with very low socioeconomic indicators. In the last decade,
however, Mozambique has experienced a notable economic recovery. Per capita GDP
in 2006 was estimated at U.S. $320, a significant increase over the mid-1980s
level of U.S. $120. With high foreign debt and a good track record on economic
reform, Mozambique was the first African nation and sixth country worldwide to
qualify for debt relief under the World Bank and International Monetary Fund
(IMF) initial HIPC (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries) Initiative. In April 2000,
Mozambique qualified for the Enhanced HIPC program and reached its completion
point in September 2001. This led to the Paris Club members agreeing in November
2001 to substantially reduce the remaining bilateral debt, resulting in the
complete forgiveness of a considerable volume of bilateral debt. The United
States already finished the process and has forgiven Mozambique's debt.
During their summit in Scotland in July 2005, the G8 nations agreed to
significant multilateral debt relief for the world's least developed nations. On
December 21, 2005, the IMF formalized the complete cancellation of all
Mozambican IMF debt contracted prior to January 1, 2005, worth U.S. $153
million.
Rebounding growth. The resettlement of civil war refugees, political stability
and continuing economic reforms have led to a high economic growth rate. Between
1994 and 2006, average annual GDP growth was approximately 8%. Mozambique
achieved this growth rate even though the devastating floods of 2000 slowed GDP
growth to 2.1%. The World Bank is predicting average growth of 7% through 2008.
Future strong expansion requires continued economic reforms, major foreign
direct investment, and the resurrection of the agriculture, transportation and
tourism sectors. Focusing on economic growth in the agricultural sector is a
major challenge for the government. Although more than 80% of the population
engages in small-scale agriculture, the sector suffers from inadequate
infrastructure, commercial networks and investment. However a majority of
Mozambique's arable land is still uncultivated, leaving room for considerable
growth.
Low inflation. The government's tight control of spending and the money supply,
combined with financial sector reform, successfully reduced inflation from 70%
in 1994 to less than 5% in 1998-1999. Economic disruptions resulting from the
devastating floods of 2000 caused inflation to jump to 12.7% that year. The
government is still working to bring inflation down to those lower numbers. In
2004 inflation was 9.1%; in 2005 it climbed to 11.2%; in 2006 it dropped back
down to 9.4%. As of March 2007, the floating exchange rate was approximately 26
meticais per dollar. (Note: In July 2006 the government revised its currency,
dropping three zeros. Thus a coin formerly worth 1,000 meticais was from then on
worth only one metical. And thus, where a dollar previously had been worth, for
example, 26,000 meticais, it was from July onward worth 26.)
Extensive economic reform. Economic reform has been extensive. More than 1,200
state-owned enterprises (mostly small) have been privatized. Preparations for
privatization and/or sector liberalization are underway for the remaining
parastatals, including telecommunications, electricity, ports, and the
railroads. The government frequently selects a strategic foreign investor when
privatizing a parastatal. Additionally, customs duties have been reduced, and
customs management has been streamlined and reformed. The government introduced
a value-added tax in 1999 as part of its efforts to increase domestic revenues.
Improving trade imbalance. In 2006 Mozambique exported U.S. $2.43 billion worth
of goods and imported U.S. $2.82 billion worth of goods. Support programs
provided by foreign donors and private financing of foreign direct investment
mega-projects and their associated raw materials have largely compensated for
balance-of-payment shortfalls. The medium-term outlook for exports is
encouraging, as a number of recent foreign investment projects have improved the
trade balance. This export growth is expected to continue. MOZAL I, a large
aluminum smelter that commenced production in mid-2000, greatly expanded
Mozambique's trade volume. In April 2001, the International Finance Corporation
(IFC) approved financing assistance for MOZAL II, which doubled overall
production capacity. Phase two went online in April 2003, five months ahead of
schedule, using primarily Mozambican workers during construction. Traditional
Mozambican exports include cashews, shrimp, fish, copra, sugar, cotton, tea and
citrus and exotic fruits. Most of these industries are being rehabilitated. In
addition, Mozambique is less dependent upon imports for basic food and
manufactured goods as the result of steady increases in local production.
SADC trade protocol. In December 1999, the Mozambican Council of Ministers
approved the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Trade Protocol. The
Protocol will create a free trade zone among more than 200 million consumers in
the SADC region. Implementation of the Protocol began in 2002 and has an overall
zero-tariff target set for 2008; however, Mozambique's country-specific
zero-tariff goal is currently 2015. Mozambique joined the World Trade
Organization (WTO) on August 26, 1995.
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