Africa-Press – Mozambique. The Port of Maputo Port handled over 18 million tonnes of cargo in 2020, Mozambican Transport Minister Janfar Abdulai said on Thursday.
This was a decline of around 14 per cent, when compared with the 21 million tonnes handled in 2019. Nonetheless, Abdulai thought the port had performed well, considering the challenges and restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Addressing the opening of the “Transport Evolution Mozambique Forum”, held virtually and bringing together over 300 participants from 20 countries, Abdulai reaffirmed the government’s commitment to creating the necessary conditions for the evolution of transport to answer the needs of domestic and regional development.
“The large investments we have been making in the Maputo, Beira and Nacala corridors in areas such as dredging, expanding port handling, the rehabilitation and modernisation of the existing infrastructures as well as the acquisition of cranes, wagons and locomotives, confirm this commitment to fulfilling Mozambique’s role in regional logistics,” he said.
The Minister highlighted the construction of the new rail customs terminal at Ressano Garcia, on the border with South Africa, which will be inaugurated within the next few days. He believed this will lead to a growth in the amount of cargo handled by the Port of Maputo, and will encourage a shift from road to rail.
As a member state and holding the rotating presidency of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Mozambique, he added, has been leading efforts to improve regional connectivity, mobilising large investments to expand and modernise transport infrastructures.
Recently, Mozambique hosted and chaired the meeting of the Ministers of Transport, Information and Communication Technologies and Meteorology which enabled the participants to harmonise strategies for an integrated development at a regional level.
Over the two day forum, the stakeholders will seek to unpack investment opportunities for transport infrastructure across the SADC region, modernising transport infrastructure to boost African trade.
