Maputo — The head of the committee organizing the Mozambican government's "inclusive national dialogue' (COTE), Edson Macuácua, has announced that public consultation will be centred on the rural areas, especially administrative posts and localities. during the months of March, April and May.
The dialogue is based on a document signed last year by President Daniel Chapo and nine political parties, which the country's parliament, the Assembly of the Republic, then transformed into a law.
The main opposition figure, Venancio Mondlane, who was runner up in the 2024 presidential election, was not involved in those discussions, and his political party, Anamola, had not yet been formed.
But once Anamola had been set up, Mondlane expressed its interest in taking part. Nonetheless, Anamola has not yet been given a seat on the COTE.
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Judging by the massive attendance at his rallies all over the country, Mondlane is easily the most popular opposition figure in Mozambique. If the exclusion of Anamola and Mondlane continues, the dialogue is likely to become an expensive irrelevance.
According to Macuácua, the rural populations will also have space and opportunity to participate and reflect on their vision of the country's future.
"We intend to obtain a comprehensive and accurate picture of the real Mozambique, based on contributions gathered throughout the national territory. Roundtables are planned in all localities, involving academics, thinkers, and local actors, with the aim of broadening the debate and preventing the process from being confined to certain elite circles', he said.
He explained that the first half of 2026 will be entirely dedicated to consultations, and only in the second half will COTE proceed with the systematization of contributions, the structuring of concrete proposals, and their submission to a new public hearing.
"We also want to provide more opportunities for Mozambicans to enrich the process. Only after the conclusion of this exercise will the Technical Commission present proposals, with the certainty that the dialogue was as participatory and comprehensive as possible', he said.
Macuácua believes that over the last year there was a positive degree of citizen participation in the dialogue "towards national cohesion and reconciliation.'
"Throughout 2025 various stages of the process took place, including consultations in all provinces and in the diaspora, roundtables with personalities of recognized authority and merit, as well as initiatives organized by civil society, involving specific social groups, such as women, young people, and people with disabilities', he said.
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