Raising Mozambique: Development Through Coal

The document examines the rapid growth of the coal mining sector in Mozambique's Tete province, driven by investments from companies like Vale, Rio Tinto, and Jindal Steel. While these investments have spurred infrastructure development and some social projects, the brief highlights significant challenges, including poor transparency of mining contracts, a lack of skilled local labor, and the complexities of community relocation. It argues that for coal to drive genuine development, the Mozambican government must establish a stronger regulatory framework, ensure public accountability for extractive agreements, and better coordinate corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts with national development plans.

• Mozambique has become the second-largest coal exporter in Africa after South Africa, with production reaching 35,700 tonnes in 2010 and a projected increase to 20 million tonnes by 2015.
• Major international firms hold significant concessions in Tete province; Vale operates a $1.3 billion mine in Moatize, Rio Tinto manages the Benga and Zambezi projects, and Jindal Steel is developing a $200 million mine in Marara, Cahora Bassa.
• The rapid influx of mining activity has overwhelmed local infrastructure and governance in Tete province, leading to coordination failures among government departments and issues with community relocations.
• Despite the presence of foreign investment, there is a lack of transparency regarding mining contracts and taxation agreements, which are typically negotiated at the ministerial level in Maputo and kept secret.
• Local employment in the coal sector is limited by a shortage of skilled technicians, forcing companies to import labor from abroad or from major Mozambican cities like Maputo and Beira.
• A significant portion of corporate social spending is directed toward the operational cost of relocating communities rather than purely social investments; for example, Vale spent $30 million on relocations between 2006 and 2011.

APA

Besharati, N. A. (2012). Raising Mozambique: Development Through Coal. South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Policy-Briefing-56.pdf

Chicago

Besharati, Neissan Alessandro. Raising Mozambique: Development Through Coal. South African Institute of International Affairs, 2012. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Policy-Briefing-56.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Besharati |first1=Neissan Alessandro |title=Raising Mozambique: Development Through Coal |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=September 2012 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Policy-Briefing-56.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{besharati2012raising, author = {Besharati, Neissan Alessandro}, title = {{Raising Mozambique: Development Through Coal}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2012}, month = sep, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Policy-Briefing-56.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }