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Blog, Mozambique

Mozambique – Travel Guide

Facts to assist you when travelling to Mozambique.

Mozambiquan population

The Mozambiquan population currently stands at 33 million.

Capital and Largest City

Maputo is the largest and capital city of Mozambique.

Currency

Mozambiquan metical.

Office Hours

08:00 – 17:00.

Weekend

Saturday – Sunday.

Time Zone

UTC +2.

Calling Code

+258.

Tipping

If a service charge is not included in the bill a tip of 10% is acceptable.

Embassies

Most countries are represented by embassies or consulates located in the capital city.

Government

Filipe Nyusi is the current and 4th president of Mozambique. He is the leader of the FRELIMO party, which has been governing the country since 1975.

Climate

Mozambique has a tropical climate with two seasons. The wet season lasts from October to March, while the dry season lasts from April to September. However, climatic conditions vary depending on altitude. Rainfall is heavy along the coast and decreases in the north and south.

Transport

Mozambique’s main airport is Maputo International Airport, located in the capital city. The country’s modes of transport include rail, road, water, and air. While the infrastructure is on par with that of a developing country, many of the roads are unfortunately unpaved. Mozambique is also home to several large seaports, including Nacala, Beira, and Maputo. The central Beira Railroad Corporation route links the port of Beira to the country’s neighbours such as Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Economy

The main industries in Mozambique that contribute to its economy include aluminum, coal, petroleum products, chemicals (fertilizer, soap, paints), cement, asbestos, glass, textiles, tobacco, food processing, and beverages.

Hospitality

Locals in Mozambique are known for their friendliness and hospitality. There is mutual trust and respect amongst the country’s people. A handshake and a warm smile are often exchanged during greetings. However, unlike other African countries where its considered polite to ask questions about the individual’s personal health, in Mozambique it is considered rude to ask personal questions or pry into someone’s private life.

Greetings

Greeting is an integral part of the Mozambiquan culture as it is in many other ethnic cultures. Upon entering a room or seeing someone for the first time it is important to greet everyone. It is also integral to shake hands, exchange names, and wish the people you are greeting a good day. Politeness lies in body language such as maintaining a smile and eye contact. Other forms of greeting include clasping the forearms, tapping shoulders, and the Quembo, which is native to the country.

Money

The official currency of Mozambique is the metical. The name metical comes from the Arabic word mithqal. The symbol for the metical MZN or MT. It is divided into 100 centavos.

Transportation

Most major roads in Mozambique are paved and offer a smooth ride between major destinations. However, potholes remain the country’s biggest road hazard. Additionally, many local drivers are also in the habit of driving recklessly. The number of recorded traffic accidents in the country is therefore at a current high. Expats may take precautions when driving and are advised to avoid travelling at night. Fatal crashes and pedestrian accidents are also common after daylight.

Safety

Mozambique is generally a trouble-free country. The most common crimes in the country happen to be street crime, sometimes involving knives and firearms. There are some areas in cities which are more dangerous than others, and these should be avoided. Expats are advised to be vigilant at all times. Avoid walking alone at night and don’t display valuables or money. Beaches or offshore islands are not policed.

Culture

Language is important to any culture, and Mozambique is no different. Mozambique has a diverse population that speaks many languages. Although Portuguese is the official language of Mozambique, there are also many other languages spoken in the country, such as Swahili, Macua, Changana, and Makhuwa. The country’s people also boast exquisite traditional clothing that is heavily influenced by the country’s many ethnic and cultural traditions. The colours and cuts of a dress of their traditional garments vary greatly from region to region. Women’s clothing typically consists of bright cotton and muslin skirts. Older women and Muslim women may wear two dresses for extra modesty, and even a headscarf.

Shops

Mozambique has a number of modern shopping centres and malls that resembles those found in western countries. Shopping in this country should be hassle free, especially in the capital city and other urban areas. There are also a multitude of online stores for the convenience of all shoppers.

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Written by Saudika Hendricks

Edited by Eloise Williams

In Africa, there is an alarming third wave as the vaccine rollout is hampered. In recent light of the vaccine rollout in all parts of the world, third world countries vaccine rollout seems to be stagnant, experts fearing that it may take decades to vaccinate their respective countries.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) regional office has reported that the third wave of Covid-19 cases is spreading faster in Africa. On Thursday, 17 June 2021, WHO regional director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti warned, “With a rapid increase in the number of cases and increasing reports of severe disease, the latest wave threatens to be the worst to date in Africa,”

According to the regional office, for five consecutive weeks, Africa has seen an increase in Covid-19 cases, signaling the beginning of the third wave in Africa. “As of 20 June—day 48 into the new wave—Africa had recorded around 474 000 new cases—a 21% increase compared with the first 48 days of the second wave.” As reported by WHO, the pandemic is resurging in 12 African countries and at the current rate of infections, the ongoing surge is set to surpass the previous one by early July.

18 African countries have already used over 80% of their COVAX vaccine supplies, 29 have administered over 50% of their suppliers, and eight have exhausted their vaccine supply. It is important to be aware that just over 1% of Africa’s population has been fully vaccinated. Globally, 2.7 billion doses have been administered, with just under 1.5% having been administered in Africa.

Dr Moeti is urging the international community to help Africa deal with the Covid-19 vaccine supply as the surge threatens to impair not only Africa’s economy but society.

Mozambique, News

Mozambique: Tripartite Electronic Visa Agreement Signed in Maputo

Lynn Mackenzie, J.D., LLM
Courtesy of Adrian Frey, Club Mozambique

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed, Monday July 20th, 2020 between the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Land, Environment and the Interior. The agreement defined principles of cooperation and coordination in the development and testing of a pilot electronic visa system (e-Visa) in Mozambique.

This MOZBIO2 project envisions the Ministry of the Interior via National Migration Service, being responsible for the administration, management and inspection of migration at national borders, including conferring legality on the stay of foreign citizens in accordance with Law No. 4/2014, of February 5th. Furthermore, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s National Institute of Tourism will be responsible for implementing marketing programmes for tourist destinations promoting training in the hotel and tourism sector, the classification of tourist establishments and investment promotion. Moreover, the Ministry of Land and Environment’s National Conservation Areas Administration (ANAC) will promote conservation areas, with the focus on nature-based tourism.

The content of this article is provided for general information purposes. The provision of this article does not constitute legal advice or opinion of any kind; no advisory or fiduciary relationship is created between Relocation Africa and any other person accessing or using this article. Relocation Africa will not be liable for any damages or loss arising from using any part of this article.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].

Mozambique

Loon and Vodacom Partner to Increase Rural Internet Access for Mozambicans

Loon and Vodacom partner to bring network access to previously uncovered populations via stratospheric internet balloons.

Alphabet’s Loon and Vodacom have signed a deal to use Loon’s balloon-powered internet solution to expand the Vodacom network in Mozambique. In terms of the agreement, Loon will help Vodacom provide service to un-served and under-served parts of the country with a network of floating cell phone towers that operate 20 kilometres above Earth.

Using the Loon solution, Vodacom will expand mobile network access to Cabo Delgado and Niassa provinces, two regions that have proven hard to cover in the past due to the vast and logistically challenging geographical areas, together with low population density. The Loon solution will provide a 4G service that supports Data, Voice, SMS and USSD, which will also enable mobile financial services. The service will be available to any Vodacom subscriber with a standard 4G-VoLTE enabled handset and SIM card. Users will not need to do anything special to connect to the service; they will connect just as they would to a normal cell tower. In fact, it’s unlikely that a user will know that they are connected to the service provided by a high altitude balloon, except for the fact that they may have a signal in a location where it previously did not exist.

Vodacom’s partnership with Loon is a perfect example of how technological innovation can connect the most rural communities in Africa. We are pleased to be part of this initiative in Mozambique, which is helping to bridge the digital divide. This is even more pertinent in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, where more Mozambicans will now have access to healthcare information through our Loon partnership. We look forward to forging similar partnerships and projects across the continent, as we ensure that no one is left behind when it comes to accessing the global digital economy.
Vodacom Group CEO Shameel Joosub

Loon and Vodacom have been working collaboratively with Mozambican communications and aviation regulators, including Autoridade Reguladora das Comunicações de Moçambique (ARECOM) and the Institute for Civil Aviation of Mozambique (IACM), to obtain the necessary approvals to enable service in Mozambique.

We’re extremely pleased to be partnering with Vodacom, one of Africa’s largest mobile network operators, to begin serving parts of Mozambique in the coming months. Vodacom has a big footprint in Southern Africa, and provides service to tens of millions of people across multiple countries every single day. We view this as the first step to a larger partnership that will allow us to serve more of those users throughout Africa.
Loon’s CEO Alastair Westgarth

The companies are grateful to have received approvals to start importing and installing the required ground infrastructure for Loon’s balloons to operate in the stratosphere above the country, and for Loon to provide service over the Vodacom network.

Vodacom Mozambique Chief Technology Officer Pedro Rabacal says: “Vodacom Mozambique is excited and proud to be able to bring the latest technological innovation to some of the most remote areas of the country. In times such as these, it is more important than ever that we find ways to ensure that we expand our coverage and services and that our customers have access to critical hygiene and lifesaving information. This partnership with Loon offers a key solution that will significantly accelerate Vodacom’s 4G coverage to areas of Mozambique that have been challenging to service. Our aim is to expand and push to the edge of coverage so as to provide the same quality voice, data, sms and M-Pesa services to all Mozambicans”.

“This agreement symbolises yet another advance in the field of mobile communications technologies in the country and will allow greater connectivity for Mozambicans in any geography. With this action, we reaffirm our position as a company focused on innovation and, above all, on providing an increasingly better experience to our customers. We have ambitions to continue to grow with more modern and comprehensive solutions by improving the quality of our services and responding positively to the needs of Mozambicans.”

In the coming months, Loon and Vodacom will work together to continue installing terrestrial infrastructure, which will serve as the physical connection point for Loon’s balloons to Vodacom’s internet and core network. Loon will also begin flying balloons above Mozambique to learn the stratospheric wind patterns on which the balloons must navigate to remain above the service area. Network integration testing is ongoing in order to ensure that this innovative solution works as intended. Loon and Vodacom expect to begin providing service to users in the coming months.

For information as to how Relocation Africa can help you with your Mobility, Immigration, Research, Remuneration, and Expat Tax needs, email info@relocationafrica.com, or call us on +27 21 763 4240.

Sources: [1], [2]. Image sources: [1], [2].