The government has approved the creation of the Interministerial Commission for Territorial Planning (CIOT), an institutional coordination mechanism that aims to manage and supervise activities related to territorial development in the country. The new commission will be chaired by the prime minister, Adriano Maleiane, and will include the participation of various government officials, as reported by Lusa.
According to the presidential decree of 19 September, the CIOT was conceived as a ‘consultative and coordinating body between different ministries’, with the aim of promoting the organisation and monitoring of decision-making processes that affect the development and territorial transformation of Mozambique.
Among the competences assigned to the CIOT is the responsibility for monitoring and analysing reports on the state of land use planning, as well as the prior assessment of major land development projects, such as railways, development corridors and energy transport infrastructures. The commission will also have the role of proposing the approval of major urban development projects, always taking into account the associated environmental and socio-economic impacts.
‘The commission will also have the role of proposing the approval of major urban development projects, always considering the associated environmental and socio-economic impacts’
Among its duties, the commission will encourage the dissemination of alternative forms of physical planning that contribute to an orderly and functional occupation of the territory, especially in villages and communities. It will also issue recommendations to the various sectors of activity regarding the management of the territory and its natural resources.
The CIOT will report directly to the Council of Ministers and will be made up of representatives from key ministries, including Spatial Planning, Territorial Organisation, Agriculture, Public Works and Water Resources, Mineral Resources and Energy, and Tourism. The National Association of Municipalities of Mozambique (ANAMM) will also be represented.
Technical support for the CIOT will be provided by a technical commission made up of representatives from the areas that make up the CIOT, appointed by the respective ministers, as well as the secretary-general of ANAMM. This technical committee will be headed by a national director for Spatial Planning, who will coordinate the quarterly meetings and report to the minister.