Maputo National Park, a protected reserve located 70 kilometres from the Mozambican capital, saw a record number of visitors in 2023, receiving more than 20,000 tourists, which contributed to the growth and recovery of investment in the area.
According to the administrator of Maputo National Park, Miguel Gonçalves, the number of tourists has increased by between 10% and 15% every year, and last year was the best ever.
“It was the best year ever in terms of visitors. We’re reaching the levels we were at before covid-19. In terms of marine activities, we’re still recovering – 2017 was the best year ever in terms of the number of divers,” explained Miguel Gonçalves, administrator of Maputo National Park.
The official, quoted by Lusa, said that a major investment is currently underway, which consists of improving communication and signposting, as well as accommodation services, in order to protect the existing animals and tourists.
“Inside the park there are already campsites with good conditions, including hot water, running water and power, as well as three lodges for tourist accommodation, two of which are five-star. At the same time, we are investing in training our human resources, and in the first three months of 2024 we have already seen positive gains,” he said.
Maputo National Park brings together two historically established protected areas, on land and at sea: the Maputo Special Reserve and the Ponta do Ouro Partial Marine Reserve.
“We’re talking about two reserves in the same place, in the same system. So we moved to transform the two reserves into a single conservation area and raise the conservation status as high as possible within our reality. And we adopted the name of National Park,” he clarified.
Gonçalves pointed out that, with an area of 1,718 square kilometres, in both its terrestrial and marine components, the park includes dune forests, grasslands, mangroves, coral reefs, beaches, rivers and lagoons. The park employs 121 people full-time, but this number could easily exceed 200.
“We have, for example, 42 colleagues working on the fencing and, at the moment, there are nearly 30 on the alien species removal programme, eight artisanal fishing monitors, 42 on turtle monitoring and as many more on cleaning and road opening activities,” he said.
