MOZAMBIQUE CHRONOLOGY - 01-31 MAY 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/01 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - WORKERS DAY
Thousands of workers took to the streets in central Maputo, in the traditional May Day parade, demanding higher wages, and an end to mass sacking in privatised companies. The parade took place under the slogan "For social, labour and wage justice", and many of the placards and banners carried expressed dissatisfaction at last month's increase in the statutory minimum wage. In percentage terms, this was a large increase - 27 percent. But it means that the minimum wage is still only 450,000 meticais - slightly more than 36 US dollars - a month. "No to starvation wages", read some of the placards which workers carried past the platform where President Joaquim Chissano, Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi and other dignitaries were watching the parade.
From: Workers March on May Day / AIM / 1 May 1999

ITEM N. 99/05/03 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - LAND MINE - INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
The Mozambican government will do all in its power so that, within ten years, "we can celebrate the eradication of landmines from the face of the earth", pledged President Joaquim Chissano. He was speaking in Maputo at the opening of the first meeting of countries who have signed the Ottawa Convention outlawing anti-personnel landmines. Chissano noted that the Convention imposes some strict time limits. Signatories are given four years to destroy their stocks of landmines, and ten years to clear all mines buried in their soil. Demining in Mozambique is painfully slow. Chissano said that only 11,000 mines a year are being removed: at this pace, it will take about 160 years to demine the entire country. Assistance to landmine victims was another key issue for the conference, said the President. "In Mozambique, thousands of our fellow-citizens, mutilated by these devices, are waiting for the day when we shall be able to increase the support and socio-economic reintegration they deserve", he continued. Mozambique was pleased, he added, "that something which, only a short while ago, seemed the dream of a few countries and organisations, has become a project on a universal scale". The ban on the use of landmines, destroying stocks of mines, mine clearance, and assistance to the victims should be "common aims for all of humanity", said Chissano.
From: Chissano opens Land Mine conference / AIM / 3 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/03/03-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - LAND MINE - INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
Despite the Ottawa Convention seeking to outlaw anti-personnel landmines, new mines "are still being laid every week, in conflicts old and new, from Angola to Kosovo", warned the United Nations Deputy secretary-general, Louise Frechette, in Maputo. Speaking at the first conference of countries that have signed the convention, Frechette stressed the need "to persuade all governments who have yet to sign the treaty to do so". So far 135 countries have signed the convention and 77 have ratified it. She noted that one of the most important obligations under the treaty is the destruction of stockpiles of landmines. "It is an enormous task", she said. "Some countries still maintain millions of mines and will need the help of the international community in destroying them". Frechette described the effect of mines on development as "devastating", since the presence, or even the suspected presence, of a single landmine "can prevent the cultivation of an entire field, rob a whole village of its livelihood, place yet another obstacle on a country's road to reconstruction". "We can limit and reduce the suffering of civilians after a conflict; we can help the healing process; and we can protect innocent civilians, including humanitarian workers, peacekeepers and all those working towards making the world a safer place", she concluded.
From: Despite Ottawa Convention, land mines still being laid / AIM / 3 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/04-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - AFRICAN UNIT
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano received the secretary general of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), Salim Ahmed Salim, with whom he discussed the present political situation in Africa and internationally. After the meeting, Salim told reporters that "we spoke of the present situation in the Congo Democratic Republic, Angola, and the Comoros, and also of the international conference on landmines". He said that he asked Chissano, who is deputy chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), to work with other leaders in the region to seek solutions for all these conflicts. On the landmines conference, Salim said that he has been impressed with the capacity of Mozambique to organize such a meeting. He noted that the meeting would encourage those countries not affected by these lethal devices never to use them. "We have to work for the eradication of land mines. We have the responsibility and obligation to work towards this end", he said.
From: Chissano receives OAU Secretary General / AIM / 4 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/05 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION - LAND MINES
The Australian government announced a donation of 700,000 US dollars meant for the Mozambican Accelerated Demining Programme (PAD). The announcement of this donation, which is to be channelled through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), coincides with the Maputo conference of signatories of the Ottawa treaty outlawing anti-personnel landmines. The Australian High Commissioner to Mozambique, Denise Fisher, said that this money is part of her country's support to mine clearance programmes worldwide. Australia's assistance includes the creation of national demining capacity, encompassing the training of Mozambican suppers and the acquisition of mechanical means for landmine detection. From: Australian support for demining in Mozambique / AIM / 5 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/10 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE -LEGISLATION - DENATIONALISATION
Mozambique's former rebel movement Renamo introduced a bill into the country's parliament, which seeks to hand back to "social organisations, associations and religious denominations" all property they had once owned but which had been nationalised shortly after Mozambican independence. The Renamo bill mentions the nationalisation decrees of 1975, which took into state ownership all schools and health units, thus creating the national education and health services, and of February 1976, which nationalised all rented housing. The bill makes no exceptions: it demands handing back "all property" that had belonged to "social organisations, associations and religious denominations". This means that every school or clinic once owned by religious missions would be returned. The bill does not explain what it means by "social organisations", nor does it restrict the beneficiaries of the bill to Mozambican organisations. Indeed, most Mozambican NGOs and other private bodies only came into existence in the 1980s and 1990s: so the "social organisations" referred to would be largely Portuguese colonial ones.
From: Renamo presents denationalisation bill / AIM / 10 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/10 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - POLITICAL PARTIES
Wehia Ripua, leader of the tiny Mozambique Democratic Party (PADEMO), has been chosen as the presidential candidate for the coalition UMO (Mozambican Opposition Union) in the general elections scheduled for later this year, according to Casimiro Nhamitambo, the coalition's secretary general. He described Ripua as someone with experience, making a point of his participation in the national liberation struggle, and of the fact that he ran for president in the first multiparty elections, in 1994. Commenting on recent claims by Renamo leader Afonso Dhlakama, that this coalition would disappear within a week, Nhamitambo described this as a lie, because "our coalition is strong countrywide, particularly in Cabo Delgado, Niassa, Nampula and Zambezia provinces".
From: Ripua UMO candidate for president / AIM / 10 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/11-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - HEALTH - POLIO
Mozambican Health Minister, Aurelio Zilhao, launched preparations for a countrywide vaccination campaign against polio, urging society at large to become actively involved, in order to ensure that Mozambique is free of this disease by the year 2000. One particular aspect of this campaign is that along with the anti-polio vaccine the children will also receive vitamin "A", since recent studies showed deficiency of this vitamin in Mozambique, particularly in children. The vaccine will be given in two doses, the first between 26 and 30 July, and the second between 30 August and 3 September. Launching the campaign, Zilhao noted that it "is the responsibility of all of us", stressing that the peaceful environment in the country is favorable for attaining the campaign's aims. The Ministry believes that coverage of over 100 per cent was reached because mothers from neighboring countries brought their children over the borders to be vaccinated. The campaign is to cover over 3.2 million children aged between zero and five.
From: Polio Vaccination campaign launched / AIM / 11 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/13 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - REGIONAL RELATIONS - CONGOLESE CRISIS
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano claimed that, despite the continuing war in Congo - Kinshasa, "a wish for a negotiated solution can be felt" among the belligerents. He was speaking to reporters at Maputo airport after returning from Dar-Es-Salaam where he held talks with the Tanzanian and Zambian presidents, Benjamin Mkapa and Frederick Chiluba. The three leaders form a "troika" set up by the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in an attempt to mediate in the Congolese conflict. Chissano said the meeting had decided that "we should let President Chiluba continue with the work he has been doing until a cease-fire is achieved".
From: Chissano in talks on Congolese crisis / AIM / 13 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/14 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - NATIONAL ANTHEM - LEGISLATION
The Mozambican parliament reopened the competition to write a new national anthem. The competition held at the end of 1998 failed to produce anything regarded as worthy of symbolising the nation. A seven-member jury of artists and musicians considered that all 35 entries were of poor quality. Nonetheless, it forwarded the three least bad to the Assembly. But the deputies agreed with the jury's assessment that the entries "do not reflect in an appropriate way the cultural richness and historic values of the Mozambican motherland". Friday's resolution accepted the jury's recommendation that the competition be reopened. Entries can be submitted between 20 May and 21 June, and the 31 member ad-hoc commission on the national anthem will report its conclusions to the Assembly by 30 June. When the matter came to a vote, Frelimo's overall majority ensured that the possibility of submitting new lyrics to the existing melody remained in the terms of reference. The Frelimo position won by 126 votes to 115 with one abstention.
From: Competition on National Anthem reopened / AIM / 13 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/14-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INVESTMENT -
The company Blanchard Mozambique Enterprises (BME) is to invest about 1.5 million US dollars in equipment, infrastructure and re-introduction of animals in the Maputo Game Reserve. BME, set up by the late American right-wing millionaire, James Blanchard III, envisages developing an area spanning about 236,000 hectares, from Inhaca Island, off the Maputo coast, up to the South African border, into an enormous Eco-tourism project. BME's executive director, Richards Fair, said that an estimated 520,000 US dollars has been earmarked for the purchase in South Africa of 100 zebras and impalas, 20 buffaloes, ten giraffes and hippopotamus for the repopulating of the reserve as well as to jump start the return of tourists. BME's investment plans include the purchase of patrol vehicles, training of >personnel, construction of the camping site and shoring up of roads. All the sums so far mentioned by BME are relatively small. They certainly do not add up to the 800 million dollars suggested by Blanchard's associates as the total investment involved when the project was first mooted in 1995.
From: Blanchard enterprises to Invest 1.5 million Dollars / AIM / 14 May 1999


ITEM NO. 99/05/15-MZ
MOZAMBQUE - REGIONAL COOPERATION
The Mozambican government is to demand explanations from Swaziland for recent Swazi violations of the general agreement governing relations between the two countries, according to Mozambican foreign Minister Leonardo Simao. Swaziland unilaterally repatriated about 300 Mozambicans who were allegedly living in the country as illegal immigrants. Simao said that such repatriations, without any prior warning, constitute a breach of the agreements between Mozambique and Swaziland. "Relations between countries are governed on the basis of accords which are negotiated before being signed", said Simao. "In this case, there was a failure to comply with what has been established. We shall discuss with them on the basis of this agreement, and we shall have to do the same with South Africa, which also repatriates Mozambicans in circumstances which are outside what has been agreed".
From: Mozambique protests to Swaziland / AIM / 15 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/16 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - REGIONAL COOPERATION - REGIONAL INTEGRATION
Mozambique and Malawi are to introduce transit permits for vehicles crossing their common borders, according to sources in the Mozambican Road Transport Directorate. The measure, aimed at facilitating the movement of people and goods, will take effect as of 1 June. The decision was taken in a recent meeting of the Mozambique/Malawi joint road routes management committee held in Blantyre. The introduction of permits is part of an agreement in the area of road transport that Mozambique has been signing with neighboring countries in the context of SADC regional cooperation. Four types of permits will be issued, with the following time limits and charges: 14 days for 180,000 meticais (about 15 US dollars), three and six months for 1,080,000 and 2,160,000 meticais respectively, and 12 months for 4,320,000 meticais. "We will facilitate the payment of the charges at the border gates so that the permit will not make the activity of businessman difficult", said the source without giving any further details.
From: Mozambique and Malawi to introduce Transit Permits / AIM / 16 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/17-MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano visited the United Arab Emirates, intended to strengthen cooperation between the two countries. According to the Deputy Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism, Mahomed Rafique, the central goal of the Mozambican delegation is to persuade businesses of the UAE to invest in Mozambique. "We want to make them aware of the potential of our country, to appreciate the conditions of the regional and local market, and to strengthen links of industrial and economic cooperation", he said. Also on the delegation is the governor of the northern province of Cabo Delgado, Jose Pacheco. Who said he wanted to consolidate the contacts his province has made with the Emirates' authorities and businesses.
From: Chissano visits United Arab Emirates / AIM / 17 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/17 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - AGRICULTURE Mozambique needs about 692 tones of seeds, so those farmers affected by adverse weather conditions this year may replant. Farmers who lost their crops to torrential rains, flooding and mudslides in parts of central and southern Mozambique require most of the seeds. The latest figures on the floods indicate that about 63,000 hectares of crops were lost. So far, the Mozambican government in collaboration with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has provided 245 tones of various types of seeds to the affected areas. But sources in the Ministry of Agriculture's Early Warning System said that this quantity accounts for only 35 per cent of the country's needs. The government has also distributed 92.288 agricultural tools (such as hoes and machetes). The needs here are calculated at 2,131,896 hand tools.
From: Mozambican farmers needs 692 tonnes Of Seeds / AIM / 17 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/18 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - POLITICAL PARTIESAfonso Dhlakama, leader of Mozambique's former rebel movement Renamo, told a group of ambassadors in Maputo that Renamo has every intention of competing in the forthcoming presidential and parliamentary elections, and wants them to take place this year. Dhlakama insisted that the elections should be held on schedule in 1999, but ruled out December as a possible month, because by then the rainy season will have started. He also objected to the proposal to reduce the voter registration period from 75 to 60 days, on the grounds that this may reduce the number of citizens who register. According to diplomatic sources, Dhlakama also raised the question of funding for opposition parties. But he also said that Renamo was not making such funding a condition for participating in the elections, and told the ambassadors Renamo was prepared to campaign "on foot", if necessary.
From: Dhlakama wants Elections in 1999 / AIM / 18 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/18 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION - DIPLOMACY
Mozambique and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) decided, to open embassies in each of the countries, as a means of facilitating reciprocal contacts. The decision was taken in Dubai, during the working visit of Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano to the UAE. Mozambican Foreign Minister Leonardo Simao said that Mozambique would initially open a consulate in Abu Dhabi and a trade representation in Dubai. An Embassy will be established later in Dubai. During a meeting of delegations of the two countries they discussed specific proposals tabled by Mozambique concerning cooperation with the UAE in the areas of infrastructures, energy, trade and social sectors. The UAE could not give a final decision on these issues, but promised to do so after closer studies. Before these talks, Chissano expressed satisfaction at the openness of the UAE authorities, stressing the historic ties linking the two countries. "It is no coincidence that Mozambique is a member of the Islamic Conference Organisation", said Chissano, noting that a large percentage of the Mozambican population consists of Moslems.
From: Mozambique and UAE to establish embassies / AIM / 18 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/19 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - TRADE UNIONS - LABOUR LAW
Trade unionists from the chemical, rubber, and printing industries expressed their concern at continued violations of the country's labour legislation by employers. Joaquim Fanheiro, general secretary of the National Union of Chemical, Rubber, Paper and Printing Workers (SINTQUIGRA), said that the union has plenty of evidence of illegal behavior by employers, particularly as regarded wage rises. Under the legal norms on collective bargaining, all wages above the statutory minimum should be negotiated between the employer and his workers, represented by their union. But Fanheiro said that what happens in many companies is that the employers fix the wage scale unilaterally. He regarded this as a "serious" violation of the labour law approved by parliament in 1998, which lays down a detailed procedure for collective bargaining. The government decreed a 27 per cent increase in the minimum wage, bringing it to 450,000 meticais (about 36 US dollars) a month.
From: Unions protest at violations of Labour Law / 19 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/20 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - INVESTMENT - ENERGY
Veiga Anjos, the new chairman of the board of directors of the Cahora Bassa Hydroelectric dam (HCB), said that a consultancy firm is to undertake a strategic development study of the role the company has to play in the Southern African region over the next 20 years. However, Anjos could not be drawn into disclosing the name of the firm, adding only that it is one of the "most renowned in the world" on such issues. Speaking to journalists after a meeting with Mozambican Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi, he said the study would aim to bring HCB into line with new realities: "We have to define what role HCB will play in the production of energy in Southern Africa", he said. The study is costed at 600.000 US dollars.
From: Strategic development study for HCB / AIM / 20 May 1999
ITEM NO. 99/05/20 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - AGRICULTURE - INVESTMENT
The success of the Mozambican government's five-year National Agricultural Development Programme (PROAGRI) depends on improving the Agriculture Ministry's capacity to manage both human and financial resources, said Minister Carlos Agostinho do Rosario. This programme, which began implementation this year, is an initiative of the Mozambican government aimed at systematizing and harmonizing all public investment in the agricultural sector, including arketing, processing industries and rural finance, among others. Speaking to reporters during a meeting of his ministry's Consultative Council, Rosario expressed optimism about the success of the programme, stressing the role of technicians and other staff, involved in its implementation. Speaking of funding, he said that donors, although they are hesitant because the programme is still new, are prepared to cooperate with the government, but again he insisted on the need for proper management of the available resources. PROAGRI encompasses eight main components, namely, institutional development, agricultural research, farming, forestry and wildlife, management of arable land, irrigation, agricultural extension, and support to agricultural production. It is costed at about 202.2 million US dollars. Of this money, 36.3 million US dollars is to be used this year.
From: Success of PROAGRI depends on good management / AIM / 20 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/20 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - POLITICAL PARTIES - Mozambique's ruling Frelimo Party celebrated the 70th birthday of a man regarded as one of the founding fathers of Mozambican nationalism, Marcelino dos Santos. At the birthday party, held in the Frelimo Central Committee offices, President Joaquim Chissano paid tribute to dos Santos as someone "who never faltered in his determination despite all the difficulties and privations we have passed through". Dos Santos was one of the founders of Frelimo, and was deputy president of the movement from 1970 to 1977. After independence, he held a variety of government and party positions, and remains an active member of the Central Committee. Dos Santos is also an accomplished poet, and Chissano cited one of his best known poems "We must plant", to argue that what Frelimo had planted was "the tree of independence".
From: FRELIMO celebrates a 70th birthday / AIM / 20 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/21 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - EDUCATION - SECURITY
The Mozambican government has approved the statutes of a new "academy of police sciences", a higher education institution that should start its first academic year in August, Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi announced. He said that the new academy would prioritize students from the Mozambican police force and other institutions of the Interior Ministry. But in future it could also accept students from other areas, including the private sector. As for funding for the academy, Mocumbi said there was "strong support from the international community", particularly from Switzerland. The teaching staff will mostly be Mozambican, but Mocumbi admitted it would be necessary to recruit foreign lecturers for certain specialist areas.
From: Mocumbi announces new Police Academy / AIM / 21 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/24 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - HEALTH - MALARIAThe United Nations World Health Organisation (WHO), through its Maputo office, has pledged its willingness to provide technical and financial support to the Mozambican government's accelerated programme to combat malaria. According to the WHO representative in Mozambique, Carlos Tiny, the institution is prepared to support the government under the "Roll Back Malaria" (RBM) programme, which is an initiative of WHO Director-general Gro Brundtland. During her recent visit to Mozambique, Brundtland pledged that WHO would contribute 500,000 US dollars for the implementation of the programme in Mozambique. The government was told that 422,250 cases of malaria, 240 of which resulted in deaths, were reported in Mozambique during the last half of 1998 alone. These cases are only those reported from health units. It is certain that many others occurred but were not reported to the health authorities.
From: WHO pledges support to Malaria Programme / AIM / 24 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/24 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - VOTER REGISTRATION
The Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE), the electoral branch of the Mozambican civil service, is preparing to train about 11,000 people to undertake voter registration throughout the country, said the STAE general director Antonio Carrasco. He said that his institution is selecting 44 people, four from each of the country's 11 provinces, to be trained as instructors who will then be in charge of training the registration brigades in their provinces. "The training of these instructors will start by the end of next month. We hope to have trained the whole structure within 50 days, from instructors, at national level, down to the brigade staff", said Carrasco. He stressed that STAE is presently concerned with the success of the voter registration, and has already concluded tenders for the supply of all the necessary materials, including printed materials for voter education.
From: STAE prepares voter registration / AIM / 24 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/26 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - CIVIC EDUCATION - JOURNALISM
The vice-chancellor of Maputo's Eduardo Mondlane University, Brazao Mazula, urged the media to be "unbiased and objective", as a means to ensure the success of the second multi-party general elections, scheduled for later this year. Mazula was speaking in Maputo, during one of a series of conferences organized by the country's Journalism School. "The media, particularly during electoral periods, should rationally inform citizens", said Mazula, warning that if reporters manipulate people "they will be contributing to disinformation". He stressed that as the country is still suffering from the effects of the war that ended in 1992, all Mozambicans should know how to preserve "the peace formula", by preserving dialogue. Mazula stressed that reporters should be accurate about the messages of the politicians, and should "know how to transmit the message taking the context into account. To inform without manipulating or slandering". He further explained that, in order to be unbiased, reporters must realise that "Mozambique is not the southern, central or northern region. It is the whole country, from the Rovuma to Maputo, and from the Indian Ocean to Zumbo. He made a point of stressing that reporters should treat all political parties with equal respect. "Any party can win. People should be informed in order to be able to choose", he said.
From: Mazula urges the media to be unbiased / AIM / 26 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/27 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - TRANSPORTS AND COMMUNICATIONS
Rebuilding the Sena railway line, which links the central Mozambican port of Beira to landlocked Malawi, will cost 300 million dollars, and this money must be mobilised by September, according to Rui Fonseca, chairman of Mozambique's publicly-owned port and rail company, CFM. Fonseca was addressing an extraordinary meeting of the Sofala provincial government, held in the town of Inhaminga, which President Joaquim Chissano visited. The Sena line is not only important for Malawian trade, but also for key Mozambican products. One branch of the line goes to the Moatize coalmines in Tete province, and another goes to the sugar plantation at Marromeu. Without the railway neither the coal nor the sugar are likely to be viable. Fonseca said that rebuilding the Sena line would require 900,000 sleepers and 900,000 cubic metros of ballast. A large quarry produces about 100 cubic metres of ballast an hour, and would therefore take three years or so to produce the amount needed.
From: Rebuilding Sena line will cost 300 million dollars / AIM / 27 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/27 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - POLITICAL PARTIES - CONGRESS
Mozambique's main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, plans to hold its first peacetime congress from 26 to 29 July, according to Vicente Ululu, spokesman for a Renamo National Council meeting held in Maputo. Renamo is billing this as its Fourth Congress. Almost nothing is known about the other three, supposedly held during the war of destabilisation. The National Council discussed the documents that will be submitted to the Congress, including a new programme and statutes for the party. The content of these documents has not been made public. Asked whether Renamo might form a coalition with other opposition parties for the forthcoming general elections, Ululu said the National Council did not discuss this issue. He also reaffirmed Renamo's desire that the elections should be held this year, as scheduled, and not postponed into the year 2000.
From: RENAMO Congress scheduled for July / AIM / 27 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/28 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - VOTER REGISTRATTION
The chairman of Mozambique's National Elections Commission (CNE), Jamisse Taimo, announced that the CNE is proposing to the government a mid-July date for the start of voter registration, in preparation for the country's second multi-party presidential and parliamentary elections. He said that after studying all the requirements for successful voter registration, the CNE believed it should begin in "the second half of July". The government, however, must fix the exact dates for registration. This year's registration will be an expensive exercise, costed at around 20 million dollars. Instead of simply updating the old electoral registers, there is to be complete re-registration of the entire electorate. In theory, every Mozambican over the age of 18 is to be issued with a brand new voter's card. The voter registration period is supposed to last for 75 days. If it starts on 16 July, it will thus end on 28 September. There must then be a period of at least 60 days before polling.
From: Voter Registration may start in mid-July / AIM / 28 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/28 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - REGIONAL COOPERATION - NACALA CORRIDOR
The general manager of Malawi Railways, Enoch Limbe, has claimed that money is now available to build a short stretch of railway that will make it more likely that Zambia will start using the Nacala Corridor in northern Mozambique. Limbe made his optimistic claim at a meeting in Nacala between the Mozambican Rail Company, CFM, and Malawian users of the Nacala Corridor. Limbe said that Malawi Railways faces strong competition from road haulage companies, which take Zambian goods either to the central Mozambican port of Beira, or thousands of kilometers further south, to the South African port of Durban. Zambian businessmen have expressed an interest in using Nacala since October 1997. That was when the Chairman of the Zambian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Gerry Chabwera, visited the Nacala corridor and pledged that Zambian companies were willing to use it. The use of Nacala would certainly be much cheaper, in terms of transport costs, for eastern Zambia than either Durban or Dar es Salaam. Chabwera had estimated that Zambia could move 200,000 tones of freight annually through the Nacala Corridor.
From: Zambia hopes to use Nacala Corridor / AIM / 28 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/28 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - GOVERNMENT
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano has said that his government is drafting a five-year plan of governance, for the period 2000-2004, and will soon submit it to public appreciation. Speaking at a rally in Nhamatanda district, in the central province of Sofala, Chissano said that the 2000/2004 plan is essentially geared towards poverty eradication by the implementation of major development projects. One such project is the rebuilding of the Sena railway linking the port of Beira to Malawi, other projects mentioned by Chissano included the Zambezi Valley Development Programme, which will provide customs and other fiscal benefits for investors in the region, and plans for the construction of a dam on the Pungue river. Private investors in line with the government policy will undertake these projects, said Chissano.
From: Government drafting five-year plan / AIM / 28 May 1999



ITEM NO. 99/05/29 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - REGIONAL COOPERATION
South African Deputy President Thabo Mbeki promised that he would "look deeply" into the compulsory repatriation of Mozambicans from South Africa. He made this promise in Pretoria at a meeting with a Mozambican delegation led by Prime Minister Pascoal Mocumbi. On the return of the delegation to Maputo, Finance Minister Tomas Salomao said that the meeting was part of "regular consultations" aimed at assessing economic cooperation, and investigating new areas in which the two countries can work together. Among the questions discussed were the Cahora Bassa dam, the building of a pipeline to carry Mozambican natural gas to South Africa, and the restructuring of the Mozambican port and railway company, CFM, in which the management of port terminals and railway lines is being farmed out to private businesses. As for the repatriation of Mozambicans, which the South African police have sometimes carried out without respecting the agreements between the two countries, Salomao said Mbeki "took note of the issue, promised to look deeply into what was going on, and said he would later raise the matter again with the Mozambican government".
From: Mocumbi and Mbeki meet in Pretoria / AIM / 29 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/29 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - ELECTIONS - MEDIA
The general director of the Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE), Antonio Carrasco, recently urged the Mozambican media to contribute to raising awareness among the population of the forthcoming general elections. Speaking at the journalism seminar organised by the Maputo Journalism School, Carrasco urged reporters to play their role in ensuring that there is a mass turnout on polling day. He noted that in the 1998 municipal elections, 85 percent of the electorate abstained. He thought such high levels of abstention could be avoided in the residential and parliamentary elections, if the media was seriously committed to a programme of voter education.
From: Media role in Mozambican Elections / AIM / 29 May 1999

ITEM NO. 99/05/31 - MZ
MOZAMBIQUE - COMMUNICATIONS - ECONOMIC POLICY
As from 1st June, Mozambicans will pay slightly less for their phone calls, thanks to the introduction of Value Added Tax (VAT). The publicly owned Telecommunications Company, TDM, recently published for the first time its list of tariffs without tax. Previously phone bills have silently incorporated 20 per cent sales tax. From now on, TDM will break down its bills so those consumers know exactly how much tax they are paying. Since VAT is levied at the rate of 17 percent, phone prices fall by 2.5 per cent. The price of a three-minute local phone call is now 1,000 rather than 1,025 meticais. A call over a distance of between 50 and 250 kilometers now costs 2,500 meticais a minute rather than 2,564 meticais. Calls in a radius of 250 to 500 kilometers fall in price from 4,100 to 4,000 meticais a minute, while ringing someone over 500 kilometers away will cost 5,000 rather than 5,125 meticais a minute. The reduction in phone bills thanks to VAT is only a brief respite: TDM has already warned consumers that the prices of domestic calls will continue to rise, as the cross-subsidy from international to domestic calls is gradually eliminated.
From: With VAT, phone bills fall / AIM / 31 May 1999

Compiled by SARDC Maputo