Mozambique is looking to increase the quantity and quality of power supplied to Zimbabwe due to growing demand in the neighboring country's agricultural and mining sectors.

The announcement was made on Monday in Maputo by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Veronica Macamo Ndlovu, at the end of the official talks between President Filipe Nyusi and his Zimbabwean counterpart, Emmerson Mnangagwa, as part of the state visit that he has been making since Sunday to Mozambique.

"Due to the continuous demand from Zimbabwe's agricultural sector and mining industry, we are looking at increasing the quality of power supplied," said the head of Mozambican diplomacy, adding that the supply is made under an agreement signed in 1997, between Hidroeléctrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB), the public company Electricidade de Moçambique (EDM) and the Zimbabwe Energy Supply Authority (ZESA).

EDM and ZESA signed in March a bilateral contract for the supply of 50MW of power to Zimbabwe for a period of three years. This is a renewal of the previous agreement, which expired on December 31, 2021, and now includes additional power of up to 150MW.

Also on Monday, the two statesmen witnessed the signing of the agreement that transforms the Joint Cooperation Commission into a Bi-National Commission, co-chaired by the two Heads of State and Government, which is to be held once a year, starting in 2023, in Mozambique.

At the same event, memoranda of understanding were signed in the areas of higher education, science and technology, justice, as well as search and rescue in case of airplane accidents in each of the countries.

In the talks held on Monday, Mozambique showed interest in ensuring the supply and control of water volumes processed in the rainy and dry seasons, since Zimbabwe is upstream of the waterways shared by the two countries, namely the Púnguè, Búzi, Save and Limpopo rivers.

Verónica Macamo Ndlovu also highlighted the existence of a great common interest to cooperate in the areas of agriculture, tourism and health.

For his part, Frederick Shava, Zimbabwe's Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, pointed out that in the talks the two statesmen explored new areas of cooperation such as higher education, science and technology, and innovation.

"Our two leaders emphasized the implementation of the agreements and memoranda in order to transform the economies of the two countries, including in improving the living standards of our two peoples," he indicated.