Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME's) in Mozambique must invest in the technical training of their human capital to be better prepared to meet the challenges imposed by the industrial sector.

This position was defended by three panelists from institutions promoting and defending MSMEs who participated, on Tuesday, in Marracuene, in the first of four rounds of debates on "local content" promoted by the Sociedade de Desenvolvimento do Porto de Maputo (MPDC), on the sidelines of the Maputo International Fair (FACIM).

The first debate addressed the growth opportunities for MSMEs in the industrial sector. On the occasion, Paulo Chibanga, from the Industrial Association of Mozambique (AIMO), Feito Tudo Male, from the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises of Mozambique (APME), and Carmen Liasse, from the National Petroleum Institute, were unanimous in stating that one of the biggest current challenges for SMEs is the quality of services provided.

"In most of the opportunities that exist in mega-projects the requirements are certified. [It requires] a technical, qualified workforce, which means you have to know how to do it," said, the APME representative, recognizing the MPDC's role in creating a link between companies and the big projects.

Made All Male also revealed that APME has already signed memorandums with some institutions to capacitate the SME's always according to their area of activity and the demands of the mega-projects.

For his part, Paulo Chibanga referred that AIMO frequently meets with companies in the industrial sector to keep abreast of developments and new requirements and thus bring this information to SMEs.

"We are currently working on certification, because reality shows that companies are already providing services, but they lack certification. It is this type of document that allows them to participate in large projects," he said, stressing that "one of the first requirements is to certify the employees and only then the companies.

The responsible also repeated the fact that AIMO has at its disposal conditions to provide mentoring and empower MSMEs in matters that are gaps in the companies or requirements of large projects.

Another "hindering" factor for the framing of MSMEs in the industrial sector is the lack of knowledge about the sources of opportunities, which, little by little, are being unveiled by the MPDC.

On this aspect, Carmen Liasse said that the Government, through the Ministry of Mineral Resources and Energy and INP, has been holding Local Opportunity Seminars (SOL) since 2018 to reveal where opportunities in the industrial sector can be found.

"The last event we held was in Pemba, for the Coral FNLG. It is through this channel that we have been able to disseminate the opportunities, but also through the local content multisectoral group that holds monthly meetings with the private sector," he said.

The official noted that this group of government institutions in permanent dialogue with the private sector not only disseminates job opportunities, but also discusses strategies for approaching the industrial sector.