President Daniel Chapo argued on Tuesday that the private sector must become Mozambique’s largest employer, with the state concentrating on regulation, oversight, and the creation of conditions conducive to investment and business activity.
Speaking at the opening of the 21st Annual Private Sector Conference (CASP 2026), Chapo said the government is committed to implementing structural reforms aimed at making public administration more efficient, simplifying procedures, digitalising public services, and strengthening investor confidence. “Our objective is to have a state where the private sector is the largest employer — not the state itself,” the president declared.
According to Chapo, sustainable job creation depends on the capacity of businesses to invest, innovate, and expand their operations, with the state’s role being to ensure a favourable environment for private initiative. He explained that the ongoing reforms are designed to improve political, economic, and social stability, strengthen legal predictability, and reduce bureaucracy — factors considered essential to enhancing the competitiveness of the national economy and stimulating private investment.
During his address, the head of state argued that Mozambique’s economic development should not rest solely on natural resource extraction, but must also be grounded in production, industrial transformation, and competitiveness. In this context, he highlighted the need to strengthen small and medium-sized enterprises and to capitalise on the potential of agriculture, the blue economy, tourism, logistics, and manufacturing.
The president also said that trust between the state and the private sector is one of the main pillars of economic growth, stressing that no economy can prosper without credible institutions and a strong business class.
On security, Chapo reaffirmed the government’s commitment to combating organised crime, with particular emphasis on kidnappings, stating that peace and security are indispensable conditions for attracting investment and stimulating business activity.
He also advocated for a clear separation between public sector responsibilities and private interests, warning against any overlap between the two. “We cannot have people who are in the public sector and the private sector at the same time,” he said.
Addressing business leaders, the president called for long-term investment, the promotion of domestic production, worker training, technological innovation, and the pursuit of new markets. He reaffirmed that the government will continue to partner with the private sector in the structural transformation of the economy through public policies that incentivise investment, production, and wealth creation.
The 21st CASP 2026 is being held on 14 and 15 July in Maputo under the theme “Produce, Transform and Compete: Building a Strong and Resilient Economy.” The conference brings together government representatives, business leaders, business organisations, development partners, financial institutions, academics, and specialists, with the aim of deepening public-private dialogue, assessing compliance with recommendations from the previous edition, and identifying reforms, investments, and opportunities capable of strengthening domestic production, local transformation, and economic competitiveness.
The programme includes panels on infrastructure, logistics and energy, digital transformation, agribusiness and food security, tourism, industrialisation and local content, human capital, access to external markets, SME financing, business resilience, and the improvement of the business environment. It also features bilateral sessions between Mozambique and Japan and between Mozambique and China, as well as dedicated spaces for the presentation of investment opportunities and business partnerships.
Source: Diário Económico
