The rehabilitation of the port of Mocímboa da Praia, in Cabo Delgado province, which was in the hands of terrorists, is expected to cost 30 million dollars, according to the district administrator, Helenio Turzão.
According to the source, the works are expected to be completed by the middle of this year. “In this first phase, an investment of about six million dollars has already been made, but at the end of the entire development program we have calculated a total of 30 million dollars,” Helenio Turzão said.
On the night of August 12, 2020, the armed groups that have been carrying out attacks in Cabo Delgado invaded the port of Mocímboa da Praia and the clashes with the Defense and Security Forces left an unknown number of dead, including elements of the maritime force, in addition to several destroyed infrastructures.
Helenio Turzão said that the terrorists who occupied the port and the headquarters of Mocímboa da Praia for several months devastated the entire infrastructure, as well as the cargo of several clients that was at the site.
“We found the port very destroyed, both from the point of view of infrastructure and cargo. We had to do all the clean-up activity to start the rehabilitation,” the administrator explained.
The infrastructure works, which include the construction of a new quay and the rehabilitation of the container yard, began in August 2022 and should be finished by July this year, at a time when the district is gradually coming to life as a result of joint operations by Mozambican, Rwandan and Southern African Development Co”We found the port very destroyed, both from an infrastructure and cargo standpoint. We had to do all the cleanup activity to start the rehabilitation”
“The commercial and industrial fabric is already returning with some strength, which means that there is already economic activity for the populations that have been returning at a good pace,” concluded Helenio Turzão.
In total, about 62,000 people have left the coastal town due to the conflict that started five years ago, with emphasis on the mass escapes that occurred after the intensification of rebel actions in June 2020.
The coastal town was the one where armed groups carried out their first attack in October 2017, and was long described as the “base” of the terrorists.
Mocímboa da Praia is located 70 kilometers south of the construction area of the natural gas exploration project in Afungi, led by TotalEnergies.mmunity (SADC) forces.
The province of Cabo Delgado has been plagued by conflict since 2017 that is terrorizing the population. Groups of armed rebels have looted and massacred villages and towns throughout the province, and a variety of attacks have been claimed by the ‘arm’ of the self-proclaimed Islamic State in the region.
The conflict has already caused more than 4000 deaths (data from The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project) and at least one million displaced people, according to an assessment made by the Mozambican authorities.
Since July 2022, a military offensive by Maputo, with support from Rwanda and later SADC, allowed for a feeling of better security in the region that had not been felt for years, and recovered localities that were controlled by the rebels, such as the town of Mocímboa da Praia, which had been occupied since 2020.
