Background: Almost five centuries as a Portuguese colony came to a close with independence in 1975. Large-scale emigration by whites economic dependence on South Africa a severe drought and a prolonged civil war hindered the country's development. The ruling party formally abandoned Marxism in 1989 and a new constitution the following year provided for multiparty elections and a free market economy. A UN-negotiated peace agreement with rebel forces ended the fighting in 1992. Heavy flooding in both 1999 and 2000 severely hurt the economy. Political stability and sound economic policies have encouraged recent foreign investment.

Geographic coordinates: 18 15 S 35 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 801,590 km²
Water: 17,500 km²
Land: 784,090 km²
Comparative: slightly less than twice the size of California

Land boundaries
Total: 4,571 km
Border countries: (6) Malawi 1,569 km; , South Africa 491 km; , Swaziland 105 km; , Tanzania 756 km; , Zambia 419 km; , Zimbabwe 1,231 km

Coastline: 2,470 km

Maritime claims
Exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Territorial sea: 12 NM

Climate: tropical to subtropical

Terrain: mostly coastal lowlands uplands in center high plateaus in northwest mountains in west

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Monte Binga 2,436 m

Natural resources: coal titanium natural gas hydropower tantalum graphite

Land use
Arable land: 3.98%
Permanent crops: 0.29%
Other: 95.73% (1998 est.)

Irrigated land: 1070 km² (1998 est.)

Natural hazards: severe droughts; devastating cyclones and floods occur in central and southern provinces

Geography
Note: the Zambezi flows through the north-central and most fertile part of the country

Population
Note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected; the 1997 Mozambican census reported a population of 16,099,246 (July 2003 est.)
Growth rate: 0.82% (2003 est.)
Below poverty line: 70% (2001 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Mozambican
Adjective: Mozambican

Ethnic groups: indigenous tribal groups 99.66% (Shangaan Chokwe Manyika Sena Makua and others) Europeans 0.06% Euro-Africans 0.2% Indians 0.08%

Languages: Portuguese (official) indigenous dialects

Religions: indigenous beliefs 50% Christian 30% Muslim 20%

Age structure
0-14 years: 42.1% (male 3,634,173; female 3,725,396)
15-64 years: 55.3% (male 4,712,891; female 4,945,123)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 189,778; female 271,905) (2003 est.)

Median age
Total: 19 years
Male: 18.7 years
Female: 19.3 years (2002)

Population growth rate: 0.82% (2003 est.)

Birth rate: 38.2 births/1000 population (2003 est.)

Death rate: 30.04 deaths/1000 population (2003 est.)

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1000 population (2003 est.)

Environment
Current issues: a long civil war and recurrent drought in the hinterlands have resulted in increased migration of the population to urban and coastal areas with adverse environmental consequences; desertification; pollution of surface and coastal waters; elephant poaching for ivory is a problem
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.03 male/female
Under 15 years: 0.98 male/female
15-64 years: 0.95 male/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male/female
Total population: 0.96 male/female (2003 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 199 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 180.61 deaths/1000 live births (2003 est.)
Male: 216.85 deaths/1000 live births

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 31.3 years
Male: 30.98 years
Female: 31.63 years (2003 est.)

Total fertility rate: 4.87 children born/woman (2003 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 13% 12.6 to 16.4% estimates vary (2001 est.)
People living with hivaids: 1.1 million (2001 est.)
Deaths: 60,000 (2001 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 47.8%
Male: 63.5%
Female: 32.7% (2003 est.)

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Mozambique
Conventional short form: Mozambique
Local short form: Mocambique
Former: Portuguese East Africa
Local long form: Republica de Mocambique

Government type: republic

Capital: Maputo

Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (provincias singular - provincia) 1 city*; Cabo Delgado Gaza Inhambane Manica Maputo Maputo City* Nampula Niassa Sofala Tete Zambezia

Independence: 25 June 1975 (from Portugal)

National holiday: Independence Day 25 June (1975)

Constitution: 30 November 1990

Legal system: based on Portuguese civil law system and customary law

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO (since 6 November 1986); note - before being popularly elected, CHISSANO was elected president by Frelimo's Central Committee on 4 November 1986 (reelected by the Committee 30 July 1989)
Head of government: Prime Minister Pascoal MOCUMBI (since 17 December 1994)
Cabinet: Cabinet
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president
Election results: Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO reelected president; percent of vote - Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO 52.29%, Afonso DHLAKAMA 47.71%

Legislative branch
Elections: last held 3-5 December 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
Election results: percent of vote by party - Frelimo 48.54%, Renamo-UE 38.81%; seats by party - Frelimo 133, Renamo-UE 117
Note: Renamo-UE ran as a multiparty coalition; none of the other opposition parties received the 5% required to win parliamentary seats; in September 2000, Renamo-UE member Raul DOMINGOS was expelled from the party; he continues to hold his parliamentary seat as an independent

Judicial branch
Note: although the constitution provides for the creation of a separate Constitutional Court, one has never been established; in its absence the Supreme Court reviews constitutional cases

Political parties and leaders: Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (Frente de Liberatacao de Mocambique) or Frelimo [Joaquim Alberto CHISSANO president]; Mozambique National Resistance-Electoral Union (Resistencia Nacional Mocambicana-Uniao Eleitoral) or Renamo-UE [Afonso DHLAKAMA president]

International organization participation: ACP AfDB C ECA FAO G-77 IBRD ICAO ICCt (signatory) ICFTU ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS IHO ILO IMF IMO Interpol IOC IOM (observer) ISO (correspondent) ITU MONUC NAM OAU OIC OPCW SADC UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNMISET UPU WCO WFTU WHO WIPO WMO WToO WTrO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Armando PANGUENE
In the us fax: [1] (202) 835-0245
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 293-7,146
In the us chancery: 1990 M Street NW, Suite 570, Washington, DC 20,036
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Sharon P. WILKINSON
From the us embassy: Avenida Kenneth Kuanda 193, Maputo
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 783, Maputo
From the us telephone: [258] (1) 492,797
From the us fax: [258] (1) 490,448

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of green (top) black and yellow with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side; the black band is edged in white; centered in the triangle is a yellow five-pointed star bearing a crossed rifle and hoe in black superimposed on an open white book

Economy overview: At independence in 1975 Mozambique was one of the world's poorest countries. Socialist mismanagement and a brutal civil war from 1977-92 exacerbated the situation. In 1987 the government embarked on a series of macroeconomic reforms designed to stabilize the economy. These steps combined with donor assistance and with political stability since the multi-party elections in 1994 have led to dramatic improvements in the country's growth rate. Inflation was brought to single digits during the late 1990s although it returned to double digits in 2000-02. Fiscal reforms including the introduction of a value-added tax and reform of the customs service have improved the government's revenue collection abilities. In spite of these gains Mozambique remains dependent upon foreign assistance for much of its annual budget and the majority of the population remains below the poverty line. Subsistence agriculture continues to employ the vast majority of the country's workforce. A substantial trade imbalance persists although the opening of the MOZAL aluminum smelter the country's largest foreign investment project to date has increased export earnings. Additional investment projects in titanium extraction and processing and garment manufacturing should further close the import/export gap. Mozambique's once substantial foreign debt has been reduced through forgiveness and rescheduling under the IMF's Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) and Enhanced HIPC initiatives and is now at a manageable level.

Real gdp growth rate: 7.7% (2002 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity - $1100 (2002 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 22%
Industry: 23%
Services: 55% (2001 est.)

Agriculture products: cotton cashew nuts sugarcane tea cassava (tapioca) corn coconuts sisal citrus and tropical fruits potatoes sunflowers; beef poultry

Industries: food beverages chemicals (fertilizer soap paints) aluminum petroleum products textiles cement glass asbestos tobacco

Industrial production growth rate: 3.4% (2000)

Labor force: 9.2 million (2000 est.)
By occupation agriculture: 81%
By occupation industry: 6%
By occupation services: 13% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate: 21% (1997 est.)

Population below poverty line: 70% (2001 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.5%
Highest 10: 31.7% (1997)

Distribution of family income gini index: 39.6 (1996-97)

Budget
Revenues: $393.1 million
Expenditures: $1.025 billion, including capital expenditures of $479.4 million (2001 est.)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices: 15.2% (2002 est.)

Exports: $680 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Commodities: aluminum prawns cashews cotton sugar citrus timber; bulk electricity
Partners: Belgium 24.3% South Africa 9.1% Germany 6.2% (2002)

Imports: $1.18 billion c.i.f. (2002 est.)
Commodities: machinery and equipment vehicles fuel chemicals metal products foodstuffs textiles
Partners: South Africa 27.5% France 8.9% US 7% Australia 6.9% Japan 6% Malaysia 4% (2002)

Debt external: $966 million (2002 est.)

Exchange rates
Note: effective October 2000, the exchange rate is determined as the weighted average of buying and selling exchange rates of all transactions of commercial banks and stock exchanges with the public

Electricity
Production: 7.193 billion kWh (2001)
Production by source fossil fuel: 2.9%
Production by source hydro: 97.1%
Production by source other: 0% (2001)
Production by source nuclear: 0%
Consumption: 1.39 billion kWh (2001)
Exports: 5.8 billion kWh (2001)
Imports: 500 million kWh (2001)

Natural gas
Production: 60 million m³ (2001 est.)
Consumption: 60 million m³ (2001 est.)
Exports: 0 m³ (2001 est.)
Imports: 0 m³ (2001 est.)
Proven reserves: 63.71 billion m³ (37,257)

Telephones
Main lines in use: 90,000 (2001)
Mobile cellular: 287,000 (2002)

Telephone system
General assessment: fair system but not available generally (telephone density is only 16 telephones for each 1,000 persons)
Domestic: the system consists of open-wire lines and trunk connection by microwave radio relay and tropospheric scatter
International: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 3 Indian Ocean)

Internet
Country code: .mz
Service providers isps: 11 (2002)
Users: 22,500 (2000)

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $35.1 million (2000 est.)
Percent of gdp: 1% (2000 est.)

Airports: 165 (2002)
With paved runways total: 22
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 10
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 3
With paved runways under 914 m: 5 (2002)
With unpaved runways total: 143
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 16
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 35
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 91 (2002)

Pipelines: gas 189 km; refined products 292 km (2003)

Railways
Total: 3,123 km
Narrow gauge: 2,983 km 1.067-m gauge; 140 km 0.762-m gauge (2002)

Waterways: 3,750 km (navigable routes)

Merchant marine
Total: 3 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,125 GRT/7,024 DWT
Ships by type: cargo 3
Note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 2 (2002 est.)

Disputes international: none

Illicit drugs: Southern African transit point for South Asian hashish South Asian heroin and South American cocaine probably destined for the European and South African markets; producer of cannabis (for local consumption) and methaqualone (for export to South Africa); corruption and poor regulatory capability makes the banking system vulnerable to money laundering but the lack of a well-developed financial infrastructure limits the country's utility as a money-laundering center