News

The Mozambican and Chinese governments signed an agreement in Maputo on Wednesday on bilateral cooperation for the period 2008-2009, aimed at strengthening bilateral trade and economic relations.

Huge quantities of logs wre exported on Monday from the central Mozambican port of Beira, on board a Chinese ship, in flagrant violation of government policy on the export of unprocessed wood.

The Irish government has pledged 208 million Euros (about 290 million US dollars) to help poverty relief efforts in Mozambique during the period 2007/2010.

Norway has pledged a grant of 30 million Norwegian crowns (about five million US dollars) to support the institutional capacity building programme of the Mozambican Ministry of Energy for the next five years.

The Mozambican government on Wednesday approved the draft of the state budget and of the Social and Economic Plan for 2008, which will now be submitted to the end of year sitting of the country's parliament, the Assembly of the Republic.

For the first time since Mozambican independence in 1975, a warship of the United States navy is visiting the country.

The Mozambican government on Tuesday lifted the ban imposed in late July on the sale of the "Colgate Maximum Cavity Protection", brand of toothpaste, after laboratory tests showed that it was safe to use.

The construction of new arsenals for the Mozambican armed forces (FADM), built far away from residential areas, is set to cost 600 million meticais (about 2.4 million US dollars), which will be paid from the state budget.

Four Mozambican trade unions, representing different sectors of activity, have decided to merge into one organisation as a means of strengthening their ability to defend the interests of their members.

The Mozambican economy grew at a slower pace in the first half of this year than in the same period of 2006, but is still on target for reaching the planned figure of 7.2 per cent growth in GDP for 2007.

Research that ended in June shows that there are still 612 places suspected of being mined in the southern Mozambican province of Inhambane, and the central provinces of Manica and Sofala.

The Mozambican road sector needs 30 million US dollars for maintenance work and other running costs during the next nine months (October 2007-June 2008).

The board of directors of the World Bank approved in Washington on Tuesday a 15 million US dollar loan to support a project to expand Mozambican water supply systems.

The Mozambican government's relief agency, the National Disaster Management Institute (INGC), has warned that a tsunami may hit the Mozambican coast on Wednesday night.

Although the 13 members of Mozambique's National Elections Commission (CNE) are supposed to work full time on their electoral responsibilities, in fact they are continuing to carry out their previous jobs, thus frustrating the hopes that the new CNE would be a more professional body than its predecessors.

The tourism industry has practically recovered in Vilankulo and Inhassoro districts, in the southern Mozambican province of Inhambane, after being severely hit by the 'Favio' cyclone early February, reports Monday's issue of the daily 'Noticias'.

Social problems that characterize most of the Mozambican people are also the greatest concerns of the former freedom fighters after 33 years of the signing of the Lusaka Accords, that ended the liberation struggle against the Portuguese colonialism.

The Chinese government has declared Mozambique as an official tourist destination for its citizens.

The Mozambican government is committed with further country's decentralization and as from next year it plans to allocate 2.3 million meticais (about 90,000 USD) to the 128 rural districts for infrastructures development projects.

Mozambique's Bakers Association (AMOPÃO) has just approved a new bread price hike in response to the continuous increase of wheat flour in the domestic market, reports the Tuesday's issue of the daily paper 'Noticias'.