1996 Edition

Description

three equal horizontal bands of green (top), black, and yellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; the black band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellow five-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in black superimposed on an open white book

Location

18 15 S, 35 00 E -- Southern Africa, bordering the Mozambique Channel, between South Africa and Tanzania Flag ----

Area

comparative area

slightly less than twice the size of California

land area

784,090 sq km

total area

801,590 sq km

Climate

tropical to subtropical

Coastline

2,470 km

Environment

current issues

civil strife and recurrent drought in the hinterlands have resulted in increased migration to urban and coastal areas with adverse environmental consequences; desertification; pollution of surface and coastal waters

international agreements

party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Law of the Sea

natural hazards

severe droughts and floods occur in central and southern provinces; devastating cyclones

Geographic coordinates

18 15 S, 35 00 E

International disputes

none

Irrigated land

1,150 sq km (1989 est.)

Land boundaries

border countries

Malawi 1,569 km, South Africa 491 km, Swaziland 105 km, Tanzania 756 km, Zambia 419 km, Zimbabwe 1,231 km

total

4,571 km

Land use

arable land

4%

forest and woodland

20%

meadows and pastures

56%

other

20%

permanent crops

0%

Location

Southern Africa, bordering the Mozambique Channel, between South Africa and Tanzania

Map references

Africa

Maritime claims

exclusive economic zone

200 nm

territorial sea

12 nm

Natural resources

coal, titanium, natural gas

Terrain

mostly coastal lowlands, uplands in center, high plateaus in northwest, mountains in west

highest point

Monte Binga 2,436 m

lowest point

Indian Ocean 0 m

Age structure

0-14 years: 46% (male 4,141,915; female 4,115,191) 15-64 years: 51% (male 4,324,102; female 4,868,518) 65 years and over: 3% (male 184,606; female 243,595) (July 1996 est.)

Birth rate

45.51 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate

18.97 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Ethnic divisions

indigenous tribal groups 99.66% (Shangaan, Chokwe, Manyika, Sena, Makua, and others), Europeans 0.06%, Euro-Africans 0.2%, Indians 0.08%

Infant mortality rate

125.6 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Languages

Portuguese (official), indigenous dialects

Life expectancy at birth

female

45.5 years (1996 est.)

male

43.21 years

total population

44.34 years

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)

female

23.3%

male

57.7%

total population

40.1%

Nationality

adjective

Mozambican

noun

Mozambican(s)

Net migration rate

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

note

by the end of 1994, an estimated 1.6 million Mozambican refugees, who fled to Malawi, Zimbabwe, and South Africa in earlier years from the civil war, had returned; an estimated 100,000 refugees remain to be repatriated from those countries

Population

17,877,927 (July 1996 est.)

Population growth rate

2.65% (1996 est.)

Religions

indigenous beliefs 50%, Christian 30%, Muslim 20%

Sex ratio

all ages

0.94 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

at birth

1.03 male(s)/female

under 15 years

1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.89 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.76 male(s)/female

Total fertility rate

6.23 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Administrative divisions

10 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Cabo Delgado, Gaza, Inhambane, Manica, Maputo, Nampula, Niassa, Sofala, Tete, Zambezia

Assembly of the Republic (Assembleia da Republica)

the members are elected by direct, universal, adult suffrage on a secret ballot for a term of five years; election last held 27-29 October 1994 (next to be held NA October 1999); results - percent vote by party NA, seats (250 total) FRELIMO won a slim majority

note

the presidential and legislative elections took place as called for in the 1992 peace accords; RENAMO participated in the elections

Capital

Maputo

Constitution

30 November 1990

Data code

MZ

Diplomatic representation in US

chancery

Suite 570, 1990 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20036

chief of mission

Ambassador Hipolito Pereira Zozimo PATRICIO

telephone

[1] (202) 293-7146

Executive branch

cabinet

Cabinet

chief of state

President Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO (since 6 November 1986) was elected for a five-year term by popular vote

head of government

Prime Minister Pascoal MOCUMBI (since December 1994) was appointed by the president

FAX

[1] (202) 835-0245

[258] (1) 490114

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of green (top), black, and yellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; the black band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellow five-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in black superimposed on an open white book

Independence

25 June 1975 (from Portugal)

International organization participation

ACP, AfDB, CCC, ECA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarset, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, NAM, OAU, OIC, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court, judges appointed by the president and judges elected by the Assembly

Legal system

based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law

Legislative branch

unicameral

Name of country

conventional long form

Republic of Mozambique

conventional short form

Mozambique

local long form

Republica Popular de Mocambique

local short form

Mocambique

National holiday

Independence Day, 25 June (1975)

Political parties and leaders

Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO), Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO, chairman; Mozambique National Resistance (RENAMO), Afonso DHLAKAMA, president; Democratic Union (DU), Antonio PALANGE, General Secretary

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Type of government

republic

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission

Ambassador Dennis Coleman JETT

embassy

Avenida Kenneth Kuanda 193, Maputo

mailing address

P. O. Box 783, Maputo

telephone

[258] (1) 492797

Agriculture

cotton, cashew nuts, sugarcane, tea, cassava (tapioca), corn, rice, tropical fruits; beef, poultry

Budget

expenditures

$607 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1992 est.)

revenues

$252 million

Currency

1 metical (Mt) = 100 centavos

Economic aid

recipient

ODA, $NA

Economic overview

One of Africa's poorest countries, Mozambique has failed to exploit the economic potential of its sizable agricultural, hydropower, and transportation resources. Indeed, national output, consumption, and investment declined throughout the first half of the 1980s because of internal disorders, lack of government administrative control, and a growing foreign debt. A sharp increase in foreign aid, attracted by an economic reform policy, resulted in successive years of economic growth in the late 1980s, but aid has declined steadily since 1989. Agricultural output is at only 75% of its 1981 level, and grain has to be imported. Industry operates at only 20%-40% of capacity. The economy depends heavily on foreign assistance to keep afloat. Peace accords between civil warring factions, signed in October 1992, improved chances of foreign investment, aided IMF-supported economic reforms, and supported continued economic recovery. Elections held in 1994 diverted government attention from the economy, resulting in slippage and delays in the economic reform program. Nonetheless, growth continued in 1994-95, and the economy should move forward in the late 1990s, given continued foreign help in meeting debt obligations. One key event in 1995 was the conclusion of negotiations with Enron of Houston, Texas, for a $700 million project to exploit the Pande natural gas fields.

Electricity

capacity

2,360,000 kW

consumption per capita

58 kWh (1993)

production

1.7 billion kWh

Exchange rates

meticais (Mt) per US$1 - 10,908.0 (December 1995), 9,024.3 (1995), 6,038.6 (1994), 3,874.2 (1993), 2,516.5 (1992), 1,434.5 (1991)

Exports

$170 million (f.o.b., 1995 est.)

commodities

shrimp 40%, cashews, cotton, sugar, copra, citrus

partners

Spain, South Africa, US, Portugal, Japan

External debt

$5 billion (1992 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $12.2 billion (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector

agriculture

33%

industry

12%

services

55% (1993 est.)

GDP per capita

$700 (1995 est.)

GDP real growth rate

-2.5% (1995 est.)

Imports

$1.14 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.)

commodities

food, clothing, farm equipment, petroleum

partners

South Africa, UK, France, Japan, Portugal

Industrial production growth rate

5.8% (1993 est.)

Industries

food, beverages, chemicals (fertilizer, soap, paints), petroleum products, textiles, cement, glass, asbestos, tobacco

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

50% (1994 est.)

Labor force

NA

by occupation

90% engaged in agriculture

Unemployment rate

50% (1989 est.)

Branches

Army, Naval Command, Air and Air Defense Forces, Militia

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $84 million, 5.3% of GDP (1994)

Manpower availability

males age 15-49

3,767,855

males fit for military service

2,162,388 (1996 est.)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 29, FM 4, shortwave 0

Radios

700,000 (1992 est.)

Telephone system

fair system of tropospheric scatter, open-wire lines, and microwave radio relay

domestic

microwave radio relay and tropospheric scatter

international

satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean)

Telephones

59,000 (1983 est.)

Television broadcast stations

1

Televisions

44,000 (1992 est.) Defense

Airports

total

131

with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m

10

with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m

4

with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m

5

with paved runways over 3 047 m

1

with paved runways under 914 m

67

with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m

12

with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m

32 (1995 est.)

Highways

note

highway traffic impeded by land mines not removed at end of civil war

paved

4,693 km

total

27,287 km

unpaved

22,594 km (1991 est.)

Merchant marine

total

4 cargo ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,694 GRT/9,724 DWT (1995 est.)

Pipelines

crude oil (not operating) 306 km; petroleum products 289 km

Ports

Beira, Inhambane, Maputo, Nacala, Pemba

Railways

narrow gauge

2,988 km 1.067-m gauge; 143 km 0.762-m gauge (1994)

total

3,131 km

Waterways

about 3,750 km of navigable routes