CTA - Confederation of Business Associations of Mozambique demanded this Saturday concrete mechanisms to stop the wave of kidnappings in the country, offering to support the Government materially to improve the efficiency of the authorities in fighting crimes.

"If material support is needed to build the capacity of specific units dealing with this kidnapping issue, we are available to coordinate a campaign in which businesspeople contribute and support the government to respond," the private sector said in a statement.

For the private sector, the growing number of kidnapping cases in the country reveals alarming levels of violence within society, impacting the business environment.

"CTA condemns these horrendous crimes and vehemently demands that the competent entities immediately and rightly activate the mechanisms to combat these crimes efficiently, concretely, and with visible results," the statement adds.

The country's major cities have suffered from a wave of kidnappings that mainly affects businessmen or their family members.

Last week, two people, a doctor and a restaurant businessman, were kidnapped in less than an hour in the nation's capital.

On Friday, the eldest son of the president of the Business Confederation of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CE-CPLP), Salimo Abdula, was kidnapped, although the latter case occurred in South Africa, according to local press reports.

The President of the Republic announced in December the possibility of creating an anti-rapt police unit to combat the crime wave in the country's main cities, with more than 10 cases registered during 2020.

Lusa Agency