Mozambique is one of the most attractive and intriguing tourist destination
in South Africa. Many new international hotels and luxury lodges have opened,
while the national parks and game reserves, some under private management are
being returned to their former glory. The major draw for tourist have long been
Mozambique's 2,500 km of white, palm-fringed beaches as well as the Islands of
the Bazaruto Archipelago. The vast coral reefs host a range of unique main life
and offer unbelievable diving and fishing opportunities.
Mozambique's other exotic destinations include the mysterious mountains of Namuli
and Unango, the historical settlements of Angoche, the World Heritage Site of
Mozambique Island, The magnificent natural harbour of Pemba, and the Quirimbas
Archipelago.
Mozambique provides a contrast to other countries in Southern and East Africa,
with its rare blend of African, Arab, and Portuguese influences. This mix is
noticeable in the Afro-Portuguese cuisine adnd the Latin beat of the music in
the clubs and discos.
Mozambique was explored by Vasco da Gama in 1498 and colonized by Portugal in 1505. By 1505 the Portuguese had control of all of the former Arab sultanates on the East African coast. From about 1500 Portuguese trading posts and forts became regular ports of call on the new route to the East. Mozambique is a member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries and the Commonwealth of Nations.
Mozambique covers an area of over 800,00 sq. km, three times the size of
Great Britain. Situated South East of the African continent, it shares borders
with six other countries, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia to the North, Zimbabwe to the
West, South Africa and Swaziland to the South. The coastline is 2,500 km's long
and boasts numerous majestic beaches fringed by lagoons, coral reefs and strings
of small islands.
A vast, low grassland plateau which rises from the coast towards the mountainsin
the North and West covers near nearly half the country's land area. The Zambezi
river is the largest of the country's 25 rivers. Mozambique is rich in mineral
resources such as gold , emeralds, copper, iron ore and bauxite and is currently
in oil exporation.
Tropical to sub-tropical with coastal temperatures high for much of the year while the interior is warm to mild, even in the cooler, dry season from April to September. It is usually sunny throughout the year.
Dates and information for Mozambiques' National Holidays
Location: Barra (Inhambane / Maputo)
Category: Groups - Self Catering
Information: The Crabtree Lodge welcomes you to a true African paradise, where time is measured by the setting sun. The lodge is situated 27km east of Inhambane where you will experience the tranquility and peace
Location: Inhambane (Inhambane / Maputo)
Category: Self Catering Chalet/ Townhouse
Information: Situated amongst the Coconut Palms right on the Beach with stunning views of the Guinjata Bay is Seabound Guest House. For the Holiday maker who, is wanting an adventure or who just wants to relax
Location: Macaneta (Inhambane / Maputo)
Category: Self Catering Chalet/ Townhouse
Information: We provide accommodation on Macaneta Island (Mozambique). Macaneta island is situated 33km north of Maputo and is a peninsula borderded on the west side by the Ncomati river and on the east side by the Indian ocean.
Location: Xai Xai (Inhambane / Maputo)
Category: Self Catering Cottage/ House/ Bungalow
Information: Casa Estrela is a luxury self catering split level house, designed and created with easy, relaxed living in mind. Jeff, the houseboy, is on call for your needs, and will see to the daily cleaning. The house can accommodate 10 people.
Location: Barra (Inhambane / Maputo)
Category: Self Catering Cottage/ House/ Bungalow
Information: The lodge has 5 bedrooms all with own entrance from the walkways. The bedrooms are all equipped with a fan, cupboard , mosqito nets and linen. All bedrooms have a queen sized bed and 2 single beds except the 5th bedroom that's got 4 single beds.
Location: Chizavane (Accommodation in Chizavane)
Category: Seafood Restaurant
Information: Zona Braza brings a welcome new restaurant to Mozambique situated 40 kms from Xai Xai, with views of the beach, sea and horizon where cool sea breezes are a leisured respite from the heat and even cooler drinks are on hand...
Location: Ponta Do Ouro (Accommodation in Ponta Do Ouro)
Category: Ocean Adventures / Safaris
Information: A journey of discovery awaits you. Educate yourself, enlighten your life and evolve as you come into contact with the resident dolphins of Southern Mozambique, on their terms. No feeding, no harassment. Just you and the dolphins, face to face...
Location: Guinjata Bay (Accommodation in Guinjata Bay)
Category: Fishing
Information: We are an exclusive Fishing Charter Company operating from Guinjata Bay Area, Inhambane Mozambique. We have two boats available for chartering and can take 9 people between the two boats. We supply all the Fishing Tackle and Terminal Tackle...
Location: Ponta Do Ouro (Accommodation in Ponta Do Ouro)
Category: Fishing
Information: Gozo Azul is an enthusiastic, friendly and owner-run adventure boat charter based in Ponta Do Ouro, southern Mozambique with more than 10 years experience in this area. We offer a variety of boat charters including deep-sea fishing, scuba diving...
The Mozambique Coat Of Arms was adopted in 1990 in the Constitution of Mozambique article 194. It shows a gear wheel, representing labor and industry. This is bordered by corn stalks and sugarcane, The corn stalks and sugarcane represent agricultural wealth. In the middle there is a red sun which symbolizes the building of a new life, over a map of Mozambique in green, and blue waves, an AK-47 which represents defense and vigilance crossed with a hoe which represents peasantry and agriculture production, and a book which represents education. The wreath is tied with a ribbon bearing the name of the Country. And the res star above is for socialism , symbolizes he spirit of international solidarity of the Mozambican people.
The Mozambique flag was adopted on 1st May 1983. It has a image of a AK-47 and is the only flag in the world to show such a modern rifle. The rifle stands for defence and vigilance. The green in the flag stands for the riches of the land, the small white stripes signify peace, the black represents the African continent, the yellow symbolizes the countries minerals, the red represents the struggle for independence. The open book symbolizes the importance of education, the hoe represents the countries agriculture and the star symbolizes Marxism and internationalism.
Provisional election results from 18 of Mozambique's 43 municipalities, issued on Thursday afternoon by the Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE), the electoral branch of the civil service, confirm that the ruling Frelimo Party has scored a huge victory, winning across the board.
As expected, David Simango, Mozambique's Minister of Youth and Sport, and the candidate of the ruling Frelimo Party for mayor of Maputo, has won an overwhelming victory in Wednesday's municipal elections.
Daviz Simango, mayor of the central Mozambican city of Beira, is virtually certain to win a second term of office, defeating both the ruling Frelimo Party, and the former rebel movement Renamo, from which he was expelled in September.
Mozambique's ruling Frelimo Party has won overwhelming victories in Wednesday's local elections in all five municipalities in its traditional strongholds in the southern province of Gaza, according to the provisional results announced on Thursday by the Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE), the electoral branch of the civil service.
The trial of brothel manager Aldina dos Santos (also known simply as "Diana") at the Pretoria Magistrates Court has been postponed yet again, reports Friday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias".
Mozambican President Armando Guebuza on Thursday urged policemen to value direct interaction with local communities in order to better understand the relations between power, the sense of authority, and the criteria that the communities use to value their property.
By Friday morning, the local election results remained unclear in only one of Mozambique's 43 municipalities, the northern port of Nacala.
The Mozambican police in the central province of Sofala detained 14 people on Wednesday in incidents related to voting for the country's third municipal elections.
Theft of electricity cables over the past two weeks in the Maputo suburbs of Triunfo and Costa do Sol have caused Mozambique's publicly-owned electricity company, EDM, losses estimated at US$60 000, according to a report in independent daily O Pais.
Although no incidents have been reported from the vast majority of polling stations during the municipal elections taking place on Wednesday, the Electoral Administration Technical Secretariat (STAE), the electoral branch of the Mozambican civil service, told AIM that disturbances forced a halt to voting in two places.
As in other Mozambican cities, the start of voting in the northern port of Nacala, for the country's third municipal elections, was marked by long queues at the polling stations.
As in other parts of Mozambique, on Wednesday morning long queues formed at the polling stations in Xai-Xai, capital of the southern province of Gaza.
Voting began on time in polling stations across Maputo on Wednesday in Mozambique's third municipal elections.
As of late Tuesday afternoon, Mozambique's main election observation body, the Electoral Observatory, had secured accreditation for 1,050 observers for Wednesday's municipal elections - but was still running into problems in the most sensitive province, Sofala.
Mozambique's ruling Frelimo Party looks set for comfortable victories in Wednesday's municipal elections in the cities of Lichinga and Cuamba, in the northernmost province of Niassa.
Electoral disaster has overtaken Mozambique's main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, which is set to lose all five of the municipalities that it won in the 2003 local elections.
Mozambique's ruling Frelimo Party, triumphant in Wednesday's local elections in most of the country, suffered a shock in the central province of Zambezia, where it came close to losing control of the town of Gurue.
Early results from the municipal elections in the central Mozambican city of Beira indicate that the current mayor, Daviz Simango, is heading for a personal triumph, beating the candidates both of the ruling Frelimo Party, and of the party which threw him out in September, Renamo.
With all 13 polling stations counted, Mozambique's main opposition party, Renamo, has lost control of the small town of Marromeu, on the south bank of the Zambezi river.
Mozambique's ruling Frelimo Party has swept to victory in Wednesday's municipal elections in its traditional strongholds in the south of the country, with majorities that in some cases are well over 80 per cent of the vote.
Mozambique's main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, is set to lose one of its few municipal strongholds, the northern port of Nacala, according to initial results broadcast by Radio Mozambique.
In the local elections in the central Mozambican city of Beira, the current mayor, Daviz Simango, is leading in the count, but so far Radio Mozambique has only declared the result from six polling stations in the central neighbourhood of Ponta-Gea.
All across Mozambique, polling stations in the country's third municipal elections held on Wednesday stayed open hours later than originally planned.
The Mozambican and Chinese governments signed three agreements in Maputo on Tuesday, under which China is to provide a total of 43 million dollars in loan and grant finance.
Citizens in the central Mozambican city of Beira turned out en masse at the city's 260 polling stations on Wednesday, after a fiercely contested local election campaign in which the current mayor, Daviz Simango is fighting for a second term of office against challenges from both his old party, Renamo (from which he was expelled in September), and from the ruling Frelimo Party.
There have been no incidents reported during the initial hours of voting in Mozambique's third local elections in any of the 43 municipalities, according to the Chairperson of the National Elections Commission (CNE), Joao Leopoldo da Costa.
Mozambican President Armando Guebuza declared on Wednesday that the local elections under way in the country's 43 municipalities are "a strong sign of stability and democracy in the country".
Theft of electricity cables over the past two weeks in the Maputo suburbs of Triunfo and Costa do Sol have caused Mozambique's publicly-owned electricity company, EDM, losses estimated at 60,000 US dollars, according to a report in Wednesday's issue of the independent daily "O Pais".
By mid-morning on Wednesday, Mozambique's third local elections were in full swing and all the polling stations in the country's 43 municipalities were open.
Fernando Mbararano, the political delegate in the central province of Sofala of Mozambique's main opposition party, the former rebel movement Renamo, has claimed that the ruling Frelimo Party is illicitly transporting people from other parts of the province to vote in the municipal election in Beira.
