The president of the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique said on Tuesday that armed violence in Cabo Delgado remained a “major concern” days after a new rebel attack in Mocímboa da Praia raised fears.
“The situation in Cabo Delgado continues to be of great concern to us,” said Agostinho Vuma, adding that a new study is underway to assess the current impact of armed attacks on the business community operating in that northern Mozambican province.
Vuma was speaking at a press conference in Maputo after a meeting with the European Union (EU) ambassador to Mozambique, Antonino Maggiore, following another attack last week in Mocímboa da Praia claimed by the Islamic State terrorist organisation through its propaganda channels. The incursion left at least 10 dead in a village in the interior of the district.
According to the president of the CTA, a study carried out in 2021 pointed to a negative impact on the business sector of around $90 million (€84 million) as a result of the conflicts in northern Mozambique, adding that initiatives are underway with the EU, to support “entrepreneurs and boost business” in Cabo Delgado.
“Unfortunately, it’s not a matter for the CTA, as a private sector, it also depends a lot on the actions of the forces” fighting the insurgency, Vuma emphasised, noting that the new study of the impact of the conflicts will be developed depending on the return of the communities and the resumption of economic activity in some regions.
The new raid in Mocímboa da Praia comes less than a month after the announcement, on 25 August, by the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Mozambique, Joaquim Rivas Mangrasse, of the elimination of the leader of terrorism in the country, Mozambican Bonomade Machude Omar, along with other members of the terrorist group’s leadership.
The extremist leader was described by several experts as “a symbiosis of brutality and vigilante” and was on the US list of “global terrorists” and the target of European Union sanctions.
The province of Cabo Delgado has been facing armed insurgency for almost six years, with some attacks claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.
On the ground in Cabo Delgado, the Mozambican Armed Defence Forces have been fighting terrorism – in attacks that have been taking place since October 2017 and which are hampering the progress of natural gas production projects in the region – since July 2021, with support from Rwanda and the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
The conflict in northern Mozambique has already displaced a million people, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and caused around 4,000 deaths, according to the ACLED conflict registration project, while the Mozambican President this week admitted to “more than 2,000” fatalities.
Lusa
