Tuesday, March 19

Mozambique

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  • Mozambique showcases a new visa program to allow visitors a 90-day stay upon entry
  • The travel and tourism industry’s overall contribution to Mozambique’s gross domestic product in 2019 was 6.2%, but that number dropped to 3.4% in 2020.
  • In 2021, Tourism receipts counted for nearly $700 million, accounting for approx. 4.1% of total GDP (according to World Travel and Tourism Council)

After the first publication of a stimulus package consisting of twenty measures at the beginning of August, Mozambique made an announcement regarding one of the first measures to be put into action: a reformed Visa system.

Mozambique’s Council of Ministers made the announcement that it had approved amendments that are anticipated to have an impact on both tourism and international investments.

Visitors to Mozambique will now be able to stay in the country for a total of 90 days, up from the previous maximum of 30 days. This change …

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Energy Resources across Africa.Source Research Gate Oghomwen Igbinovia

As Africa’s role in the global economy continues to garner prominence, it’s imperative for the continent to seal the gaping hole in its power supply.

Lack of universal power access remains a major roadblock that has retrogressed industrialization and socio-economic development. Statistics from the World Bank indicate that Africa remains the least electrified region in the world, with 568 million people lacking access to electricity.

The Bretton Woods institution, further notes that the Sub-Saharan Africa’s share of the global population without electricity, jumped to 77 per cent in 2020 from 71 per cent in 2018, whilst most regions saw declines in their share of access deficits. It has become a Hobson’s choice for African governments to prioritize the power sector, which is the epicenter of industrialization, working towards Goal 7 of the UN SDGs; which advocates for universal access to affordable, reliable and modern electricity services.

Currently, Africa’s power is …

mozambique economy (www.theexchange.africa)

Last March the IMF and Mozambique announced they’ve reached a staff-level agreement on a US $470M facility marking the fund’s much-anticipated return to the country.

At the same time, a set of measures were presented in line with the upcoming new program including the approval of a sovereign wealth fund legislation, fiscal & governance reforms, and the publication of a report on the management of funds the country received from donors as part of its COVID emergency response.

covid response mozambique health (www.theexchange.africa)

In line with the announcements, the Ministry of Finance has published today (document in Portuguese) a report showing that at the beginning of the pandemic, the country forecasted a total need of US$700M in order to mitigate the effects of the crisis. The document refers to US$386,5M in funds deployed in the 2020 fiscal year received from the IMF, the AfDB, the European Union, the US government, the Islamic Bank, …

mozambique

African economies thrive on an abundance of natural resources. However, the financial resources needed to exploit these resources remain a major constraint in Africa. Foreign direct investments are playing a critical role in filling the capital gap in Africa as most governments run on budget deficits. 

Mozambique, a new investment hub, is booming with capital inflows in its energy sector. With its abundant natural gas resources, the country has positioned itself as a dominant energy investment hub in Southern Africa.

The Prospects

Massive natural gas reserves

Mozambique has a lot of proven natural gas reserves. It ranks 14th in the world in terms of its reserves. However, production for this energy resource is still very low as well as local consumption. This is a result of poor infrastructure development to extract the resource and also proving that the sector is still in its infancy stages. There is increasing interest

Natural Gas ESI Africa

Mozambique—another African country endowed with plenty of natural gas reserves holding 100 trillion cubic feet (Tcf), has suffered another blow within the lucrative industry as security concerns forced French oil and gas giant company Total to postpone its work at a liquified natural gas (LNG) project in the country.

Internal conflicts have been occurring in Mozambique rather often. On March 27 Jihadis seized a town and allegedly attacked a convoy of fleeing civilians, which includes foreign workers, as fighting continued (Further Africa).

According to various media sources, including BBC, dozens of people are dead following an attack by Islamist militants on a town in northern Mozambique (Palma), where the LNG project is underway.

READ:Total’s Mayotte base not a threat to Mozambique’s Oil and Gas ambitions

According to information from Reuters, on Saturday Total said that none of the LNG project workers was among the victims.

However, according to BBC …

900total oil

FurtherAfricaOil and gas projects are very complex due to a variety of challenges that need to be overcome. Risk management and financial burden are some of the hottest issues currently on these projects.

Now imagine you add Covid-19 and insurgent movements near the project area.

“The French oil and gas company Total is considering setting up a logistical base for its Mozambican operations, not only in part of Mozambique, but on the French Indian Ocean possession of Mayotte, according to a report (…)” as per the digital news portal Club of Mozambique.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise at all.

Being part of the French territory, Mayotte offers the best option for Total as a preferential hub for their project in Mozambique. France operates a military base in Mayotte, in the form of a detachment of its Foreign Legion, making the island a super safe place.

Mayotte is very well …

President of Mozambique, H.E Filipe Jacinto Nyusi - The Exchange

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi will later this month take over the Chairmanship of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

The 40th Heads of State summit will be held virtually as Mozambique takes helm of the regional organization to speak on peace, security and regional co-operation.

Up to this year, the Chairman of the 16-member regional bloc was under the leadership of Tanzania’s fifth President, Dr. John Magufuli.

President Magufuli, the seating chairperson, assumed the leadership of the trade bloc last year in August. Arguably, President Magufuli had to deal with one of the worst crisis that the SADC trade bloc has ever had to face, Covid-19.

As it did for the European Union and other World trade areas, the Covid-19 global pandemic rendered business asunder across all 16 member states. Most all SADC member states were forced to close their borders effectively disrupting business flow across Africa’s largest trade bloc.…

900 bni

further africa

Following recent announcements from the government, Mozambique’s BNI (Banco Nacional de Investimentos) is about to launch two credit lines to assist the country’s SMEs to mitigate the effects of the COVID19 pandemic.

Small and medium companies represent the core of the country’s formal/ informal economy and have been heavily affected by the pandemic. The new credit lines are due to be officially announced by BNI this week and will address specifically SMEs, hospitality and education with an expected interest rate below the market rates.

Also Read: Legal pointers for Mozambique SMEs

The credit lines are meant to assist companies affected by COVID-19 in the entire country and are being financed by the government and the INSS. BNI expect the credit lines to address such issues as maintenance, restitution and the increase of jobs and household income as well as to provide some much breathing room cashflow in affected companies.

Although …

Development Bank of Southern Africa gives $81.30 million to Mozambique

Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) gave $81.30 to Mozambique’s national energy utility, Electricidade De Mocambique (EDM) for the rehabilitation and upgrading of the energy supply network.

This financing support is in line with Mozambique’s 2030 plan to upgrade its power network for it to provide universal electricity access.

Electricidade De Mocambique has launched several projects focusing on strengthening the transmission grid and improving distribution capacity in the country.

Phase one is ready for implementation. It comprises of two out of twelve projects located at Pemba City and Maputo City at an estimated cost of $81.30 million.

Also Read: African Development Banks and ABSA sign Risk Participation Agreement

The DBSA loan facility will be advanced directly to EDM as a 15-year senior debt facility.

Banco Nacional de Investimento (BNI), Mozambique’s development bank served as the project’s evaluation partner and providing capital raising and advisory services.

Development Bank of Southern Africa …

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