Mozambique: Maputo Council says concession procedures for sea beaches are underway
Mozambique: Idle land reverts to the State in Manica province, 221,628 hectares in H1
2:48 CAT | 17 Apr 2025
FILE - For illustration purposes only. [File photo: AIM]
Authorities in the central province of Manica warn that the Mozambican State will revert idle land to its favour. This is due to happen in the first half of this year.
At stake are 132 parcels of land, covering an area of 221,628 hectares, that were requested but are currently in total disuse.
The spokesperson for the 6th session of the Provincial Executive Council of Manica, Rafael Manjate, said that these land areas are located in the districts of Báruè, Gondola, Sussundenga, Manica and Vanduzi.
Manjate explained that in the district of Báruè, for example, some plots of land were requested by foreign citizens (Zimbabweans), but were after some time abandoned and are not being used.
The same scenario is seen in parts of Gondola, Sussundenga, Manica and Vanduzi, and these too will revert to the State.
“It is a central level plan and the data has already been released. The plots have already been duly identified and, in the next few days, the process of reversion can begin. The idea is that these lands can be handed over to other citizens or entities interested in using them. These are lands that should be properly used and exploited,” said Manjate.
“People requested the lands for a specific activity and we see that [now] there is nothing special there. They are not using them. This concerns us as a government. However, this is an activity that will initially take place in these districts. We believe that later this activity can be carried out in other parts of the province [of Manica 8 where we have similar situations,” he said.
Manjate acknowledged that idle land has had a negative impact on the province’s economy. In many cases, when the requested areas are not explored, the respective fees have not been paid.
According to Rafael Manjate, this indicates that the applicant does not have the financial and technical capacity to use the land.
“These lands should revert to the State so that we can find other investments. They will be given to people who are interested in investing in the province,” he added.
“If we look closely, we will see that there are many foreign citizens interested in investing here in Manica. Many Dutch people are here in Manica and want land to set up their projects. People should understand that we are not doing this because of these foreign citizens; it is an ongoing action by the provincial and central government”.
He said that some areas were being exploited by some national citizens who once worked for foreign applicants, but these are very small areas.
“In these districts, for example, we had parcelled areas of up to almost 1,000 hectares. They were divided into blocks and had very good infrastructure. There is electricity and water. Unfortunately, they are not being exploited. A plan needs to be drawn up for proper exploitation and for the State to benefit. This could generate more employment in the agricultural and livestock sectors.”
The land sector in the province of Manica has 4,128 requests on file, corresponding to an area of 5,251,998 hectares. Of these areas, 4,218,880 hectares are arable land.
Agriculture, the main activity, is followed by mining and forestry, where exotic plants are produced.
The province of Manica also has 124,491.59 hectares of conservation areas, including the Chimanimani National Park and Coutadas 4, 7, 9 and 13.
Source: AIM Moçambique
Show comments
Also read
Leave a Reply
Be the First to Comment!
You must be logged in to post a comment.
You must be logged in to post a comment.