Check out the exclusive interview with the President of the Mozambique Chamber of Commerce, Álvaro Massingue, about business opportunities in Mozambique and the Chamber’s role in promoting international trade by encouraging more and more exports of national products.
Profile Mozambique: What is the Mozambique Chamber of Commerce and why is it so important?
Álvaro Massingue: The Mozambican Chamber of Commerce, or CCM for short, was created on July 17, 1980, as an association of companies, with administrative, financial and patrimonial autonomy, with no profit or political objectives. It currently has more than a thousand members, who are the various players in the national productive sector, i.e. companies that join of their own free will in order to develop associative actions that serve to strengthen each other, pursue common goals of developing the country’s economy and jointly advocate for policies and actions that facilitate the business environment and the attraction and security of investments.
The main objective of the Mozambican Chamber of Commerce, in addition to developing business associations in Mozambique, is to promote international trade by encouraging more and more exports of national products and also to attract investors within the framework of economic policy priorities aimed at the continuous and rapid development of the country and abroad. Another role pursued by the CCM has been to advocate for a favorable environment for the development of business activity and the provision of technical and legal support for the interests of its members, particularly in the foreign trade operations they carry out and in other matters for the development of the institutional capacities of its members.
PM: Looking back over the last year, what were the most obvious challenges facing the institution and what measures were taken to overcome them?
AM: First of all, it should be made clear that our challenges, as an association, are permanent, in terms of fulfilling our statutory duties and responding fully and continuously to the processes of consolidating exports, identifying new and potential markets for national production, attracting investment and promoting the country’s image in the international economic arena and, on a permanent basis, promoting actions to train national producers in matters of improving the quality of their products, certification, packaging and labeling, in order to present themselves more competitively in the context of a dynamic national and international market.
Another challenge, which is also ongoing, is the continuous promotion of an image of what the Mozambique Chamber of Commerce is and should be. We must avoid this by promoting an identity of our own that does not allow us to be confused with other business associations. By this I mean promoting leadership in the context of the objectives of strengthening national producers, promoting and publicizing our production across borders and certifying the originality of our products.
This also includes increasing dynamism in our mission to protect, at home and abroad, the industrial property of national companies and organizations of a commercial, agricultural, technical-scientific and economic nature, and to act as an agent for brokering the registration of industrial property rights with the competent authority.
Secondly, it has been a challenge to promote a Chamber that is not seen as a competitor or adversary of any institution in the country and in this we have been fortunate, as evidenced by the recognition of our distinct role by the Mozambican government itself, which gives us greater legitimacy in the exercise of our institutional powers. And this stems fundamentally from the fact that our origins, objectives and principles are not and should not be confused with those of any other association, even though, in the course of our activities, it is essential to complement our actions with those of other business associations, on the path to achieving our goals.
At an institutional level, our main challenges are financial sustainability and providing ever better services to members. In the field of sustainability, we also refer to the creation of institutional capacities, in terms of qualified human resources capable of responding to the challenges of serving well. And this is an ongoing process that includes the reorientation and training programs of existing human resources, as well as the hiring of staff with other skills to collaborate to this end.
We also have the challenge of improving the Chamber’s role in advocacy by removing the various barriers to investment and contributing to the improvement of public policies that have an impact on business life. In this respect, 2023 was fruitful in terms of contacts with government institutions, at central and local level, with a view to interacting on better ways of collaborating in identifying these barriers and putting forward proposals for solutions. The challenge remains, however, to enhance our role in the Assembly of the Republic, as the country’s highest legislative body, particularly by raising awareness and constantly updating MPs on the main constraints of business life, which is to influence their ability to initiate legislation for the benefit of economic agents and a more favorable environment for business development.
Training our members in matters of good management and good governance of their companies, research and identification of potential markets; certification and improvement of the quality of national products, as already mentioned, are among the main challenges for relaunching Mozambique in the international trade arena, promoting the competitiveness of our national products and brands, also in view of the enormous challenges that the move towards the Continental Free Trade Area will pose for national companies.
Finally, and transversal to all of our actions, we have the challenge of promoting a Chamber that provides services that captivate companies to identify with it, both for the benefits they will get from their membership and for the answers they will find for the development of their businesses. And this is the challenge of serving well and extending our services for the benefit of all our members and the business community as a whole.
PM: Let’s talk about the main events that have made a positive impact on CCM and contributed to its growth during 2023.
AM: Our membership of the CIT (International Chamber of the Transport Industry) in June 2022 was an important milestone that contributed to our growth and greater international notoriety. It’s important to note that in less than a year of our membership of this major international association, we have achieved a position of considerable influence, which has allowed us to gain confidence to the point of hosting this organization’s extraordinary General Assembly and various other events that mark Mozambique’s economic year, both through a greater presence in the panorama of major international events and in terms of promoting the country’s economic attractiveness as a preferred investment destination. Of course, as a general rule, it takes time for investment intentions to materialize, but there is no doubt that Mozambique, through the CIT, has become part of a group of privileged countries for investment, and the results will soon be tangible.
Other events worthy of note were our successful participation in various international investment forums and the promotion of potential collaboration with partners from different parts of the world, in which CCM appeared as a leading entity in representing the country’s potential and as a partner worthy of reference in the context of the influence of the main global investors.
I could mention forums such as Invest in Africa, held in Amsterdam, the Riyadh International Forum in Saudi Arabia, business forums in the United Arab Emirates, Thailand, FOCAC, the US Franchising Forum, among many others on the African continent, which have been rich opportunities to affirm CCM’s role in contributing to Mozambique’s development efforts.
PM: What is the “appetite” of foreign investors and companies for the Mozambican market? Please give concrete examples of existing investments/business transactions.
AM: As I said in previous answers, it takes time for investment intentions to materialize, and this is due to the long and complex processes between expressing the intention to invest and making the final investment decision. In fact, even after the final investment decision has been made, the road is still long, considering the need to mobilize the necessary resources, identify potential partners, etc. However, this long process never means a lack of “appetite” or interest in investing. And we are pleased and hopeful about the results of the various prospecting missions of national potential that have been carried out by various partners and investors, including the expressions of interest resulting from various business missions and business forums.
With regard to commercial transactions, it is worth mentioning the growth in our exports of cereals and almonds to various markets, particularly beans, cashew nuts, macadamia nuts, among others; the recent agreement to export mineral water from a national brand to the Asian market; the export of our bananas, in addition to the traditional seafood market, which is experiencing further expansion.
In short, the potential for investment in Mozambique, although it cannot be properly measured, is enormous and encouraging, as is the growing and fertile market for exporting our products to various world markets.
PM: What can be done to increase investments and transactions? And which sectors are of most interest and why?
AM: All the players in our economy are already engaged in this process. As I said, it’s not a question of there being something lacking to attract investment. The government and various public bodies, the various associations, including the CCM itself, and companies in particular are duly engaged in this process. What the country needs is the patience to continue spreading the word about its potential and to improve its advocacy in order to influence the rapid materialization of the various investment intentions, both through swift action by the potentials in making the final investment decisions and in the processes of disbursing the necessary financial resources.
Domestically, and this work is also underway, we must continue to improve the legislation on doing business in Mozambique, create a more stable and secure environment for national and foreign investors, eliminating the terror that the wave of kidnappings and abductions represents for businesspeople, including the outbreaks of military instability such as those occurring in some regions of Cabo Delgado. With improved legislation that takes into account all the barriers to business development, including security aspects, Mozambique has everything it takes to become the region’s and perhaps the continent’s main investment destination.
PM: Investments: What should investors be looking out for this year?
AM: From CCM’s point of view, agribusiness and industrialization should be the main focuses, both because of the existing potential and also because of the ability of these sectors to respond to the challenges of increasing production, productivity and reducing unemployment rates, which are the main cause of poverty for many families. Above all, industrialization has the power to enable domestic transformation of national products and the potential to bring production areas closer to the main marketing centers, which contributes to a whole value chain of infrastructure expansion and development, improved living conditions for the population, and much more.
PM: How would you describe the current state of national production?
AM: We still have many challenges, despite some progress. The main challenges lie in agricultural mechanization, the development of the fertilizer industry, the introduction and expansion of production technologies, certification, packaging and labelling and, above all, the opening up of concessional lines of finance at favourable rates for the production sector, including the expansion of development finance institutions dedicated to the development of this production sector. The potential is enormous, all that is needed is increased investment in these aspects. As I said before, the growing presence of many products of national origin on world markets is a huge sign of hope and confidence.
PM: How is the Chamber of Commerce represented at provincial level?
AM: In addition to our members, we have delegations in all the provinces, run by businesspeople of recognized merit, who expand the services provided by the CCM to their scope, including assistance and support programs for members, capacity-building initiatives, the establishment of partnerships and business links, under the coordination and advice of our central office.
PM: Finally, what are the main goals and priorities for the CCM for 2024?
AM: Our priorities are set out in the fundamental lines of the manifesto we presented for the elections in which our list was victorious and which are the basis for the Strategic Plan 2021 – 2025. Our biggest focus is on a Chamber that is a leader in advocacy, business information, resources and business connections across the country, with the capacity to provide products, services and information that will only be made available by the Chamber in the most efficient and desirable way. We want to serve and exceed the needs of our members, government, strategic partners and the community in general, and in order to materialize these priorities, we are committed to the values of good corporate governance, fiscal responsibility, diversity and leadership, and proactivity.
We want to continue to modernize the way we operate and provide services to our members, consolidate our role as a credible entity and a national and international reference in promoting business and business associations, and make our Chamber a preferred partner for the government and various entities in promoting the country’s image and attracting investment. We will continue to make our contribution to removing the biggest barriers that companies face, particularly in international trade, in their inclusion in major national development projects, through the promotion of local content.
It is important to emphasize that we will always be guided by our commitment to finding answers to the wishes of the Chamber’s members and the business community as a whole, to ensure the development of their businesses and the continuity of their ventures, as well as the search for better solutions so that the conditions for national and foreign investment become increasingly conducive to their flourishing.
And in order to achieve all this, our leadership is relying on a dynamic, responsible and competent team that is already working to ensure that our Chamber is truly comprehensive, active and ethical.
