The Minister of Transport and Communications, Mateus Magala, recommended that the National Telecommunications Institute of Mozambique (INCM), the country’s telecommunications regulator, implement measures to promote the safe use of social networks, the Agência de Informação de Moçambique reported .
Speaking on Monday (25) in the district of Marracuene, Maputo province, during the opening ceremony of the INCM’s 18th annual review and planning meeting, the minister said that telecommunications networks should serve to preserve the lives and well-being of citizens.
In his speech, the minister highlighted the sometimes violent demonstrations in this post-election period, which have been taking place in the main cities, especially in Maputo and Matola. ‘We have seen with concern the irresponsible use of the country’s telecommunications network to incite violence, hatred and revenge among Mozambicans,’ he lamented.
For more than a month, the country’s main cities have been living in a climate of post-election tension, caused by demonstrations that have claimed more than 40 lives and injured around 500 people.
According to the authorities, the demonstrations have also culminated in the vandalisation of several state institutions, including two schools. Damage has also been reported in the country’s mining areas, where demonstrators have burnt camps and work machines.
The election results need to be validated and ratified by the Constitutional Council, the sovereign body responsible for administering justice in legal-constitutional matters and, ultimately, electoral litigation in the country.
He assured that by 2025, the INCM should finalise the implementation of Mozambique’s Digital Acceleration Project and expand and share the telecommunications infrastructure, guaranteeing connectivity for all citizens.
According to Mateus Magala, the regulator must implement the biometric registration of subscribers as a way of guaranteeing greater security and confidence in the use of telecommunications services, continue with the installation of digital plazas and libraries and complete the study of tariffs, which will help stabilise the telecommunications market and make it more attractive.
Other measures include restructuring the postal service, improving regulation with a view to promoting innovation and the use of modern technologies such as 5G (fifth generation wireless mobile technology) and Artificial Intelligence. The aim is also to adjust legislation in the communications sector in line with the digital transformation and the fourth industrial revolution.
