Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Interprovincial Passenger Transport company, Maning Nice, based in Nampula city, northern Mozambique, last week announced the suspension of activities for a period of one year, due to the degradation of National Highway Number 1 (EN1).
“The Management of the company Maning Nice, Lda, represented by the managing partner Bakari Shemwaliko, informs Your Excellences that, due to the degradation of the EN1, it is suspending activities on the routes Nampula/Maputo, Nampula/Sofala, Nampula/Sofala, Nampula/ Manica, Nampula/Zambézia, Nampula/Tete and Nampula/Niassa,” a statement issued on May 4th reads.
In addition to road degradation, Maning Nice says a low passenger numbers are impacting sustainability, given that a large part of revenue is used for the maintenance of buses, leaving the company unable to honour its obligations to the bank and its workers.
“Thus and via this means, the company, through its managing partner, announces that, as of May 4, 2023, it will paralyse activities throughout the national territory for a period of one year, starting from the date of the publication of the communiqué,” the document concludes.
The EN1 is a thorn in the side not only of passenger carriers, freight transporters, private motorists and tourists, but also of the government. To solve the problem, the executive has been seeking funding for the rehabilitation of the country’s main north-south highway.
At the end of last year, the government announced it would mobilise US$400 million in World Bank funding for this purpose.
Last January, the President of the Republic announced a further US$800 million in funding from the United Arab Emirates, not all of which, however, would be applied to EN1 rehabilitation.
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