Mozambique said on Wednesday it has plans to spend US$87 million
Posted by African Press International on July 26, 2007
Maputo (Mozambique) Mozambique said on Wednesday it has plans to spend US$87 million to implement a three-year industrial policy and strategy to boost its exports.
The programme will be rolled out on 7 September in the central port city of Beira, with Trade and Industry Minister, Antonio Fernando, and Agriculture Minister, Erasmo Muhate, leading the launching ceremony.
Deputy National Director of Trade and Industry, Nilsa Miquidade, told APA that three priorities of food processing, metallurgic and textile have been highlighted as targets in this endeavour.
The project’s main purpose is to improve the quality of the country’s exports, Miquidade said in Maputo.
The funding, according to her, will be raised by the government and its cooperation partners in time for the programme to be rolled out this year.
“We have launched a Made-in-Mozambique campaign and quality is a key issue. We want quality in all our exports.
“Therefore investments in infrastructure and processing plants is of vital importance to this effort,” she said in an interview.
Given the 13 years of stability, the generally positive growth trend, Mozambique has been relying on imports, particularly for food and garments.
Some 70 per cent of Mozambique’s 19 million people work in the agricultural sector (generally doing subsistence farming) than in any other industry throughout the country.
While commercial agriculture remains limited, it is expanding, especially in the sugar, cotton, citrus, coconut, cashews, and tropical fruit crops sectors.
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