Mozambique

A

Labor

In 2006 the labor force was estimated to be 9.8 million. Of these, 83 percent worked in agriculture, mostly as subsistence farmers. Industry accounted for 8 percent of the workers and services for 9 percent.

B

Agriculture

The climate and soils of Mozambique are suitable for tropical agriculture. Cotton and cashews are important export earners. In the highlands near the Malawi border, tea is an important crop. Mozambique’s staple crops are corn, sorghum, and cassava (11.5 million metric tons).

C

Forestry and Fishing

Of the 18 million cubic meters (637 million cubic feet) of timber felled in Mozambique in 2006, only 43,000 cubic meters (1,519,000 cubic feet) was used for lumber production. Most of the rest was burned as firewood. Fishing is important for the coastal populations, and there is an important export market for shellfish.

D

Industry

Before independence, Mozambique had a growing industrial sector, which was focused primarily on processing sugar, tea, copra, and other products harvested in Mozambique. Another subset of the industrial sector provided the cities with a wide range of consumer goods, from cement and furniture to beer and radios. The only heavy industry was the refining of crude oil for the South African market. Virtually all industry was either destroyed in the civil war or starved of the investment and foreign exchange needed to operate. Initial efforts to revive industry centered on establishing food-processing plants and on factories that make simple manufactured goods for local use. Important manufactured goods include aluminum, cement, textiles, cigarettes, and beverages.

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E

Mining

Mozambique’s mineral reserves are largely unexploited. Mineral processing in Mozambique is confined to small-scale mining of coal, marble, granite, gold, and bauxite.

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