Carlos Mesquita invites Norwegian businesspeople to invest in Mozambique

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Carlos Mesquita invites Norwegian businesspeople to invest in Mozambique

11:42 CAT | 14 Feb 2020

Minister of Trade and Industry of Mozambique, Carlos Mesquita. [Photo: A Verdade]

Minister of Industry and Commerce, Carlos Mesquita, reiterated on Thursday the Mozambican government’s commitment to developing domestic industry through stimulating business initiatives aimed at the revitalisation and modernisation of the sector, as well as by attracting foreign direct investment in key areas for the diversification of the economy.

Efforts to achieve this aim also include the promotion of peace and stability, the development of infrastructure to allow interconnection between production areas and consumer markets, the development of agriculture to ensure food and nutritional security, as well as the smoother functioning of industries and increasing exports.

Carlos Mesquita was speaking at the opening of the Mozambique-Norway Business Seminar in Maputo, one element of the visit of Crown Prince Haakon Magno of Norway to our country between the 12th and 13th of February.

Minister Mesquita said the seminar should respond to the challenge of maximising existing investment opportunities in Mozambique, with the involvement of national business people, entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Minister Mesquita invited Norwegian businesspeople to invest in areas that would catalyse sustainable and inclusive economic development, such as franchises, local production geared towards exports and the design of alternative and adequate financing mechanisms for SMEs.

He pointed, however, to the need to “prioritise the training of human capital in order to empower workers with current technical capacities, the transfer of technology and knowledge, and the promotion and establishment of partnerships with shared gains with Mozambican SMEs”.

For his part, Crown Prince Haakon stressed the importance of the private sector in promoting the sustainable development of the country, through, for example, the creation of jobs. He called on business agents from both countries to engage in the creation of partnerships with a view to taking advantage of the countless opportunities that Mozambique offers in the field of mineral and energy resources.

The president of the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA), Agostinho Vuma, pointed to access to finance as one of the main obstacles to the development and stability of the private sector in Mozambique, and therefore suggested the dissemination of financial instruments available in Norway to which national companies might apply as being potential drivers of the country’s economic growth.

“Knowing Norwegian companies’ great experience, we would like to have access to financial instruments that can help develop our companies. In this sense, we look forward to hearing what Norway has to offer our companies in order to develop a more intelligent partnership in connecting companies in both countries to the vast opportunities that Mozambique has to offer,” Vuma said.

Source: A Verdade