GROWING GREEN
TBY talks to Pedro Moura, CEO and Board Member of Portucel Moçambique, on the largest nursery on the African continent and responsible land management.

BIOGRAPHY
Pedro Moura was born in Braga. He graduated in forestry engineering and also holds an MBA from Universidade Católica de Lisboa. He joined Portucel in 1997 and began working on the Mozambican project in 2007. Previously, he held several positions at a number of companies within the same industry.How significant is Africa's largest plant nursery to the country and the group's overall activity?
This nursery inaugurated by the president represents a fundamental step in the evolution and implementation of this project. We have a planting program that is very aggressive and is presently being ramped up. We require the right infrastructure to produce the number of plants we need and at the quality we expect. Ultimately this infrastructure will be able to produce between 12 and 14 million plants a year. This production will be complemented with satellite nurseries that will be much smaller in terms of production. This will allow us to manage the risks of concentrating too much in one area. Diseases and pests can adversely affect production. It also allows for a more even spread of employment, which will work out better for the locals. We are working across a large area and want to distribute this wealth as widely as possible.
How will Portucel's nursery contribute to the local economy?
The impact will be enormous. In macroeconomic terms, exports will increase significantly. According to current prices, production will contribute $1 billion to annual exports. Compared to current total exports, that increase would stand between 25 and 30%. Internal added value will be huge, which means a stronger contribution to the quality of life of local families where the project is based. The resulting inflow of foreign currency is also of major importance, contributing to exchange rate stability, which will have a significant impact on controlling inflation. At cruising speed of the project, we may reach 7,000 permanent direct jobs. This indicates the tremendous impact this project will have, both locally and nationally.
What is your approach to managing land allocation?
Our mosaic approach to landscape management involves a combination of various economic, social, and environmental components. As a result, we have been able to manage such a large area we got from the government without any physical or economic displacement, which are two problems we try to avoid. Our first priority is to guarantee that livelihoods will be preserved, and the second thing is to help them improve. We designed a social development plan that will invest around $40 million over the next seven years to work toward preserving livelihoods and improving food security. In some places more than 40% of crops are lost due to bad storage conditions. Also, the One Community, One Forest program will provide opportunities not only to preserve some natural areas where products and services and essential for livelihoods, but also to plant eucalyptus that they can be used for firewood, construction materials, or for pulp processing. We also help to develop SMEs for the provision of services to the forestry segment, as well as a growing scheme to produce wood for the mills. We encourage agri-business value chains to sustain production increases for farmers and their communities. The third pillar is about quality of life, where education and health are the main concerns, as well as infrastructure. Due to programs in these three different areas, we are convinced that economic displacement will be totally avoided and we believe there will be an improvement in the quality of lives. A fourth area where we are working is empowering communities to better manage activities and assets that will be implemented through the social development plan. This is really something completely new in Mozambique.
What partnerships is Portucel considering in order to strengthen operations?
We already have a partnership with the IFC World Bank group, and it has a 20% share of the company's capital. We are looking for another potential partner, and in the future are considering working with Mozambican partners, either national companies or private families. Sooner or later the idea is to enter the stock market and offer Mozambicans the opportunity to own the company.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Review: Economy
Much to Gain
Despite numerous years of considerable economic growth, Mozambique has been unable to retain its wealth and bring more than half of its population out of poverty. Developing one of the world's largest gas reserves and becoming a regional exporter of energy may be the solution.
read articleFocus: Aluminum
Foil Plans
Mozambique is the second-largest producer of aluminum in Africa and the 14th in the world. Since 2000, it has been producing aluminum for export, and in 2015 Midal Cables opened a factory near Mozal; the country's largest aluminum smelter. This could be the start of a Mozambican aluminum value chain.
read articleInterview
Ben James, Managing Director, Baobab Resources
TBY talks to Ben James, Baobab's Managing Director, resident in Mozambique. A geologist by training, Ben has been directly involved with the development of the Company's Tete Project from a greenfields iron ore discovery to an asset on the verge of corner-stoning Mozambique's nascent steel industry.
read articleFocus: Aluminum
Aluminum Legacy
Mozambique is the second-largest producer of aluminum in Africa and the 14th in the world. Since 2000, it has been producing aluminum for export, and in 2015 Midal Cables opened a factory near Mozal; the country's largest aluminum smelter. This could be the start of a Mozambican aluminum value chain.
read articleInterview
Hon. Jorge Olívio Penicela Nhambiu, Minister, Science and Technology, Higher and Technical Vocational Education (MCTESTP)
TBY talks to Hon. Jorge Olívio Penicela Nhambiu, Minister of Science and Technology, Higher and Technical Vocational Education (MCTESTP), on bringing science and technology to rural areas and increasing research in the country.
read articleFocus: E-government + E-bau
Digital Decisions
Between 2015 and 2016, Mozambique fell five positions in the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Index. The government is investing in the GovNET and e-BAU platforms to facilitate procedures and cut the costs of acquiring business licenses and improving services provided to the public.
read articleReview: Health
Time for a check-up
Mozambique's healthcare budget rose to $561.5 million in 2015, an increase of 1.1% on expenditure in 2014, accounting for 10.2% of the state budget. Total healthcare expenditure in 2014 was $477.5 million. The Ministry for Health oversees the sector and is responsible for setting the budget each year.
read articleInterview
Dr. João M. Carvalho Fumane, Director General , Hospital Central de Maputo (HCM)
TBY talks to Dr. João M. Carvalho Fumane, Director General of Hospital Central de Maputo (HCM), about the range of services on offer and what is being done to further excellence in the health sector
read articleInterview
Hon. Jorge Ferrão, Minister, Education and Human Development
<span style="line-height: 1.6em; background-color: initial;">TBY talks to Hon. Jorge Ferrão, Minister of Education and Human Development, on the goals of the ministry, the role of local languages, and tackling teacher absenteeism.</span>
read articleInterview
Prof. Doctor João Leopoldo da Costa, Rector, Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique (ISCTEM)
TBY talks to Prof. Doctor João Leopoldo da Costa, Rector of Instituto Superior de Ciências e Tecnologia de Moçambique (ISCTEM), on the perils of the internet on education and the quality of its high school.
read articleReview: Tourism
Mozambeach
With white-sand beaches, scuba diving, and game reserves among its wide range of accommodation, Mozambique is a goldmine for tourism. However, to attract the number of tourists the country is aiming for, and entitled to, it will have to compete with its considerably more popular neighbors.
read articleReview: Legal
Smart Choices
Foreign investments are sources of capital, foreign exchange, and technical know-how for developing countries such as Mozambique. Over the past three decades, Mozambique has been successfully striving to ensure a favorable legal framework for foreign private investment.
read article