Maputo — The volume of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Mozambique fell by 21 percent in the first quarter, which corresponds to 1.2 billion US dollars.
According to a document on the Balance of Payments published by the Bank of Mozambique, FDI is heavily concentrated in the gas and mining industries. Over the same period of last year, FDI reached 1.6 billion dollars.
Despite the decline, the structure of foreign investment remained largely unchanged, continuing to be dominated by megaprojects associated with natural resources. "Extractive industries, including coal, oil, natural gas and minerals, attracted 1.209 billion dollars in the first quarter, equivalent to around 94 percent of all FDI received by the country from January to March 2026", reads the document.
The weight of the extractive industry maintains the trend observed in 2025, when FDI grew 60.2 percent to a record 5.693 billion dollars for the full year, driven mainly by natural gas projects in the Rovuma Basin, in Cabo Delgado.
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"Most of the investment entered the country in the form of supplier credits and trade credits. The Other Capital (Supplier Credits and Trade Credits) category totaled 702.7 million dollars, representing more than half of the FDI recorded during the period", reads the note.
Inflows through shares and equity interests reached 583.3 million dollars, of which 383.9 million dollars was associated with large projects. "Outside the extractive industry, the largest investment flows were recorded in the wholesale and retail trade sector, with 17.7 million dollars, electricity, gas and water production and distribution, with 17.6 million dollars, and agriculture, livestock production, hunting and forestry, with 17.4 million dollars."
In contrast, the manufacturing industry recorded a negative balance of 11.7 million dollars, reflecting net capital outflows during the period. In 2025, the extractive industry remained the main recipient of FDI, attracting 5.211 billion dollars, equivalent to 91.5 percent of all foreign investment received by Mozambique in 2024.
