12 January 2009
Maputo — Mozambique's electricity, telecommunications and water companies suffered losses of almost 2.5 million meticais (over 97,000 US dollars) due to theft and sabotage in the central province of Zambezia during 2008, reports Monday's issue of the Maputo daily "Noticias".
Worst hit was the telecommunications company, TDM. Theft of copper cables and damage to the fibre optic system was costed at 1.7 million meticais. Theft of cables and pylon parts belonging to the electricity company EDM is put at over 931,000 meticais. The loss of pipes and water meters cost Waters of Mozambique (ADM) 270,000 meticais.
The Zambezia Provincial Commission for the Preservation of Infrastructures, in its annual report, blamed the theft on the scrap metal trade. It pointed to networks that buy and export copper, aluminium, iron and other metals, without asking awkward questions about where the supposed "scrap" has come from. In other cases, stolen cables are melted down to produce domestic pots and pans.
The impact of the thefts is serious. Damaging water supply pipes may expose the public to water borne diseases. The thefts are also blamed for an erratic and unreliable supply of electricity, which can damage domestic and industrial appliances. Interruptions to TDM's fibre-optic system prevent access to the Internet, and makes modern services, such as electronic banking, impossible.
The companies affected are forced to divert funds into repairing the damage instead of expanding their networks.
The Commission says that local communities often know who is vandalizing phone or electricity cables, but do not denounce them to the police for fear of reprisals.
The Zambezia delegation of the customs service has been instructed to order compulsory pre-shipment inspection of all scrap metal being exported from the port of Quelimane. The inspections must take place in the presence of technicians from EDM, TDM and ADM. The police have been ordered to halt and inspect all trucks carrying scrap metal on the province's roads, and to demand proof that it has been acquired from a legitimate source.
The Commission also has called for closing down all the tiny businesses making utensils out of aluminium and plastic, most of which is believed to have been stolen.
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