15 December 2007
Maputo — Mozambique and Norway, who on Friday celebrated 30 years of bilateral cooperation, have pledged to continue working together to promote sustainable economic development, and mitigate the impacts of global warming.
Speaking at the opening of a seminar commemorating the date, the Mozambican Minister of Energy, Salvador Namburete, invited Scandinavian businesses to bring more investment to Mozambique. He stressed that Mozambique has a business-friendly regime in the areas of energy, natural resources, mining, agriculture, tourism and the building of infrastructures.
That Mozambique offered great potential to foreign investors was clear from the success of such enormous projects as the MOZAL aluminium smelter on the outskirts of Maputo, and the pipeline carrying natural gas from Inhambane province to South Africa, managed by the South African petro-chemical giant SASOL.
Namburete said the success of such investments was the result of the Mozambican government's efforts to create a stable political and macro-economic environment, including mechanisms to combat corruption.
"The opportunities that Mozambique presents are the result of an efficient reform programme to guarantee efficient management in priority areas", he stressed. "Fiscal and financial reforms in the public sector, and reforms in the legal system, are aimed at decentralization and deconcentrating responsibilities. These actions result from recognition of how important it is to remove obstacles to business".
For his part, Olav Akelsen, chairperson of the Norwegian parliament's Permanent Commission on Foreign Relations, said that common interests in peace, development and prosperity link Mozambique and Norway.
"Norway currently devotes one per cent of its gross internal revenue to foreign aid, and particularly to Africa", Akelsen said. "But aid in itself is not enough, and so Mozambique, like other African countries, must promote economic growth".
Akelsen warned that "Corruption is unacceptable", and called for a determined struggle against all forms of corruption, particularly in order to avoid the theft of funds intended for development.
Formal development cooperation between Mozambique and Norway began in 1977 when delegations from the two countries met in Maputo and agreed a programme of cooperation in roads, maritime transport and hydroelectric power.
Currently the three key areas for cooperation are health, fisheries and energy. In addition, Norway is one of the 19 donors and funding agencies that channels some of its assistance directly to the Mozambican state budget.
Prospects for the future include strengthened relations between Norway and the Mozambican private sector. Norwegian investments in oil and gas exploration, electricity and biofuels will be some entry points for cooperation with the private sector.
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