Whether you are a clothing manufacturer or a consumer who is interested in importing clothing from Mozambique, there are some important things that you should know. If you want to do business in Mozambique, there are a few things that you should consider, such as property rights and land tenure.
Land tenure and property in Mozambique
Throughout its history, the question of land tenure and property has been a controversial issue in Mozambique. The country’s civil war began in the early 1970s, shortly after independence from Portugal. The civil war ended in 1992, and by 1997 the country had a legal framework for land. This law promoted productive land use while protecting legitimate customary land rights. During this period, Mozambique also developed its economy from a small base, achieving rapid growth.
Although the state owns all of the land in Mozambique, the rights to it are held in trust for the people. The country’s 1997 Land Law protects the legitimate rights of smallholders. It recognizes the rights of local communities to use their land in a sustainable way, and encourages investment in land. However, the current legal framework has not always lived up to the promise of increased productivity. In the past decade, there has been intense debate about land management in the country.
This debate is driven by concerns about the distribution of gains from agricultural change. In addition, competition for land continues to be a problem in the country. The majority of rural residents lack the necessary tools to assert individual land rights. The impact of HIV/AIDS has also contributed to this problem, especially among women. There are many areas where the law could be improved.
In response to these issues, six international donor agencies launched the Community Land Initiative in Mozambique. The Initiative registered parcels of community land in the government cadastre and enabled local communities to negotiate with potential investors. The initiative also built the capacity of local communities and other stakeholders to document their rights and participate in land administration processes. The program was supported by the World Bank Group.
The programme set out to delimit 4,000 communities’ land and register five million DUATs (leaseholds granted by the state) in seven years. This was a large undertaking, but was approved by the World Bank Group with 100 million USD in funding. The World Bank’s target was to have 40% of the beneficiaries be women.
Currently, ILRG is engaged in Zambia, Ghana, and Mozambique, working with USAID bureaus and local organizations. The project will work to test the sustainability of different models for administering rights, including capacity-building of local communities and partnerships with land-based investors. It will also document experiences from its activities and make its findings available to other organizations. This work will provide evidence of what works in different sectors and regions, and feed into international best practices.
The Community Land Value Chain (CLV) is a system implemented by the ORAM Delegation in Nampula Province and the Cabo Delgado Province. The CLV aims to recognize the customary rights of communities to land resources, such as ivory and graphite. It provides a framework for communities to manage these resources and cope with the variability of rainfall.
Ferpinta Mocambique
Despite its lackluster economy, Mozambique presents mixed opportunities for the clothing industry. The industry consists of a few large players and a plethora of retailers. Unfortunately, there are a lot of low-quality second-hand goods, including clothing, in the market. It’s not surprising, considering that the majority of the country’s cotton supply is imported. And even if it were locally grown, the quality would be inferior. Thus, the only real option for manufacturers is to go after the lucrative markets of neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe and Zambia.
The garment manufacturing industry in the nation is dominated by China, which is known for its high-tech machinery and advanced manufacturing techniques. The Chinese have more than half of the world’s total share of the garments business, which is estimated to be worth about $118.5 billion in 2010. The most important challenge for manufacturers is to slash their costs. The largest industrial employer is the aluminium smelter, Mozal. Other companies in the sector include the petrochemicals firm CMH, the hydrocarbon firm CMH, and the aluminium smelter Vale Mozambique.
The Ferpinta Group, which is located in Spain, Portugal, and Mozambique, boasts more than 1,100 employees in four countries. The Group operates in four sectors: agriculture, tourism, steel and hydrocarbons. The most important is the latter, which involves the production of a large volume of high-quality stainless steel and copper pipes and tubes. The company also makes the more mundane offerings such as hot rolled steel shapes and channels. Its latest venture is a joint venture with a large textile player in the region.
The Ferpinta Group also has an impressive portfolio of non-energy related endeavors. Among its many other products are plumbing accessories and agricultural equipment. It is also the biggest beer brand in the country, the 2M brand. One of its lesser known but awe-inspiring feats is the use of the Internet in the aforementioned industry. In fact, the company is a pioneer in utilizing the Internet to sell its wares, a practice which was once unheard of in Africa. The aforementioned company is part of the Ferpinta Group, which has been in business for 50 years. Other subsidiaries include InterCement, a Brazilian private equity firm, and Topack Industria de Plasticos, a plastics processing behemoth with two industrial units in Angola.
Aside from its numerous mining and energy related operations, the Ferpinta Group is also a manufacturer of the oxford compass, a small device that is the smallest sexable item in the human body. The company is also an innovator, with a large fleet of electric and solar vehicles.
Opportunities for clothing manufacturers in Mozambique
During the past two years, the government of Mozambique has been actively looking to establish a Special Economic Zone in the province of Manica. The zone will provide generous tax benefits to companies that produce mostly for export. This article investigates the effects of this proposal on the apparel industry in Mozambique.
The government is confident about the future of the cotton and textile industries in Mozambique. The country produces a lot of cotton, but most of it is exported without any value-add. A project undertaken by the EU-SADC Trade and Revenue Fund (TRF) facilitated the participation of small-scale producers in the cotton value chain. It also helped to reduce the import bill for cotton and textile products in the country. The project helped to increase incomes for many cotton producers.
The first cotton mill in Mozambique was established in the 1940s. The emergence of the industry was due to the availability of natural fibers such as sisal and cotton. In the 1980s, the sector had 78 factories in the country. However, most of these factories closed down due to aging machinery and the liberalisation of the market. Today, the industry has 20 manufacturing plants.
While it is true that the clothing industry in Mozambique has declined over the past 30 years, the sector still has a number of opportunities. In the coming decade, the economy should improve, which should lead to increased domestic production and employment opportunities. But despite this, the clothing industry faces a number of challenges, including a poor labour environment and expensive electricity. Its ability to make profits is dependent on the quality and variety of second-hand clothes available on the market.
The introduction of manual tools for cotton processing has also helped fill the gaps in the cotton value chain. These tools have empowered women and small-scale farmers. They serve as a model for big cotton companies. These manufacturers have also helped to create jobs for thousands of workers.
The introduction of the cotton and textile value chain project has also opened the door for a prosperous future for the country’s population. The project is an example of how the government can intervene in a sector to create positive social and economic impacts. The manual tools, in particular, have provided the necessary support for small-scale farmers to earn a decent living.
The second-hand clothing industry in Mozambique is a relatively uncharted geographies of the world economy. The amount of used clothing that is sold in informal markets is substantial. The cultural perceptions and material use-value of second-hand clothing play a major role in determining the monetary value of these items.
The report also looks at the most important market players and their activities. These include a garment factory in the central Sofala province that is expected to manufacture shirts, and a few Special Economic Zones that are being considered by the government.
Henry Pham (Pham Quang Anh), CEO of DONY Garment
This year, we have found that many international buyers are seeking new suppliers based in nations outside of China and Thailand to purchase many goods and products, including uniforms, workwear, reusable cloth face mask, and protective clothing.
At DONY Garment, we are proud to welcome international customers, especially those based in the US, Canada, the Middle East, and the EU market to discover the professional production line at our factory in Vietnam.
We guarantee our products are of the highest quality, at an affordable cost, and easy to transport across the world.