Nyusi denies report of 99-year lease of port of Nacala to Malawi

Maputo, 30 Aug (AIM) – Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi has denied a report that his government has granted a 99-year lease for a space at the northern port of Nacala, to Malawi, where that landlocked country would develop a terminal for imports and exports.

The President’s denial follows reports last week by the Malawian media saying that their government had secured a 99-year lease for a space at Nacala port.

The story was fake and may have been planted to discredit Nyusi, suggesting that he is giving away chunks of Mozambican territory to a foreign country.

According to Nyusi, cited on Friday by Rádio Moçambique (RM), during his recent visit to Malawi, where he was awarded an Honorary Directorate in International Affairs and Diplomacy by the University of Malawi (UNIMA), the government only granted land outside the operational area of the Port of Nacala so that Malawi could base its dry dock, which will serve to store general cargo in transit.

During his visit to that country, Nyusi also met the Mozambican community with whom he addressed issues regarding the extreme violence carried out by the Islamist terrorists in the northern province of Cabo Delgado.

“At the meeting, the community praised his efforts to restore effective peace in Cabo Delgado and thanked him for sending a civil registry team to provide identification documents for Mozambicans living in Malawi”, the Radio report said.

(AIM)

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