A study by the Center for Public Integrity (CIP) indicates that over the 49 years since national independence, Mozambique has become a "supermarket" for finished, imported products.

This scenario, according to the study, stems from the disappearance of key industries such as food, footwear and rubber.

"In 49 years of independence, the continued dependence on imports of foreign products has increased substantially and without a national industry to meet this demand," reads the CIP document that MZNews had access to.

In the field of industry, data from CIP, a non-governmental organization (NGO), indicates that this sector's contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has fallen from 10% in 1975 to 7% in 2023, "an alarming drop that reflects significant challenges".

Looking at the figures, this NGO says that the country currently ranks 30th out of 52 African countries in the 2022 Africa Industrialization Index, after having ranked 8th before independence.

Currently, the study points out, southern African countries such as South Africa, Eswatini and Namibia, some of them with a colonial base similar to that of Mozambique, have managed to stand out through a series of well-planned and implemented strategies, ranking 6th and 10th in the index that evaluates 52 African countries respectively.

The NGO also says that in 2023, Mozambique's exports were dominated by large projects in the extractive sector (coal, gas, rubies and heavy sands), accounting for 57% of exports, and by the manufacturing industry (aluminum bars), with 16%.

Imports were led by intermediate goods (33%), including fuels (10%) and construction materials (8%). Consumer goods such as rice, wheat, cars and medicines accounted for 24% of imports.

According to the study we've been quoting, the coverage rate of exports over imports, excluding major projects, was only 26%.

The NGO says that the figures show the country's growing dependence on foreign countries for consumption and production.

Against this backdrop, the NGO questions the industrial development policies and strategies adopted over the last 49 years.