Africa Great Wall Mining Development (AGWMD), a Chinese-owned mining company, has disbursed 172,000 dollars to equip the infrastructure of Eduardo Mondlane University (UEM), the oldest higher education institution in Mozambique.

The amount will be invested in the rehabilitation of existing boreholes, the installation of new boreholes and their integration into the water supply system at the UEM campuses in Maputo, and may include the University Residential District.

The agreement also aims to sponsor research, extension and innovation projects, scientific initiation, scientific days, job fairs, awards for the five best students, scientific fairs and exhibitions, innovation competitions, including internships for final-year students in the mining areas.

The document also establishes a scholarship program, starting this year, for 100 UEM students over the next five years, which means that each year 20 students will benefit from scholarships for the Law, Geology, Marketing, Agronomy and Environmental Engineering courses.

The memorandum of understanding was signed by the rector of UEM, Manuel Guilherme Júnior, and the representative of the director-general of AGWMD, Zou Zheng, on Thursday (23) in Maputo.

Speaking at the event, the rector explained that the memorandum was a response to the need for EMU to increasingly diversify its partnerships, one of the objectives set out in the cooperation axis of the EMU Strategic Plan 2018-2028.

"The purpose of this memorandum of understanding is to regulate the terms and conditions that will govern cooperation between our institutions in the areas of training, scientific research, extension and innovation," he said.

The agreement, according to Guilherme Júnior, will also promote the employability of UEM graduates, and he assured that there has already been a concrete assessment of costs for immediate actions such as scholarships and the July (AJUs) and January (AJAs) practical activities for the UEM Geology Department courses.

Your collaboration demonstrates a remarkable commitment to the development of education and social welfare in our country," he said.

"For his part, Zou revealed that the scholarships are comprehensive and include accommodation, payment of semester fees and student subsidies, and are aimed at students from the communities where AGWMD operates.

Our company has a deep mindset that we do business in Mozambique, so we must take on the social responsibility of helping local communities to develop," he stressed.

According to Zou, AGWMD will continue to work closely with government departments and social associations at all levels in the country, as a way of increasing economic cooperation between Mozambique and China.

Based in the city of Quelimane, in the central province of Zambézia, AGWMD operates a mining concession that covers three districts of Zambézia, namely Chinde, Inhassunge, Nicoadala, Nipepe and Pebane. (AIM)