Africa-Press – Mozambique. Mozambican President Daniel Chapo on Thursday handed over more than 3,000 plots of land in the southernmost district of Matutuíne, as part of the “Infrastructured Land Project”, which is aimed at reducing the vulnerability of areas to climate risks and organizing urban growth.
According to Chapo, speaking during the ceremony, there is a need to stop disorderly urban expansion, focusing instead on the prior planning of infrastructures.
“We cannot continue to build and rebuild after each tragedy. We must plan beforehand. We are not just making land available. We are organizing the territory, protecting current and future lives, and preparing safer communities”, he said.
The plots in question already have open access roads, an installed water supply system, an extension of the electricity grid, and spaces reserved for social facilities, including schools, health centres, markets, police stations, leisure areas, and administrative services.
With an estimated area of approximately 360 hectares, this is part of a national strategy for structured urban expansion, initially launched in Vilankulo district, in the southern province of Inhambane.
According to the President, territorial planning is an essential condition for economic independence. “If yesterday we liberated the land to assert sovereignty, today we have the responsibility to organize it and put it at the service of development”, he said.
He added that prior infrastructure development allows for reduced future costs and minimizes risks associated with the occupation of low-lying areas prone to floods.
“Organizing the land is protecting lives. Developing the territory is accelerating economic independence. Even when they have resources and land, one of the most expensive things for young people is ensuring that the land has facilities such as roads, a water supply system, and electricity”, he said.
Applications for the plots are being accepted digitally through the platform operated by the government’s Housing Development Fund as well as in person at the district government and the Youth Housing Cooperative created to support the initiative.
The project also includes a model house intended to guide beneficiaries in the construction of standardized and resilient housing.
For his part, the Governor of Maputo Province, Manuel Tule, said that the initiative represents “a significant milestone in urbanization and territorial planning policy.
Source: AIM
