Maputo, 28 Jun (AIM) – Mozambican Secretary of State for Transport, Chinguane Mabote, calls for patience in the restructuring process of the country’s publicly-owned Mozambique Airlines (LAM), as this initiative part of the government’s broader strategy to build a modern transport network capable of driving Mozambique’s socio-economic development.
Under the government’s restructuring plan, LAM is now under management of three other publicly-owned companies, namely: the rail and port company, CFM; the insurance company EMOSE (each with 15.4 percent of LAM’s shares) and Hidroelectrica de Cahora Bassa (HCB), the company that operates the Cahora Bassa dam on the Zambezi river, in the central Mozambican province of Tete (with 25.2 percent of the share).
The measure emerges at a moment when the publicly-owned Mozambique Airlines (LAM) is trying to recover from a bankruptcy after it recorded debts with suppliers, valued at over 230 million dollars as a result of embezzlement.
In 2024, LAM was under the management of the South African company Fly Modern Ark (FMA), which was hired by the government to bring the company into profitability and rescue it from bankruptcy. However, the effort did not solve anything.
According to the Secretary of State, speaking during a working visit to LAM premises, the country’s national flag carrier is strategic national asset for territorial integration, tourism development, trade expansion and the movement of people between the country’s provinces and across the region.
“We express confidence in the airline’s ongoing modernization process and we urge its technical and management teams to remain focused on safety, punctuality and operational efficiency.
Mabote also held meetings with Mozambique’s air transport logistics and service chain, namely: Mozambique Airports Handling Services (MAHS), Mozambique Express (MEX) and SMS Catering.
According to the Civil Aviation Master Plan (PDAC 2026–2045), the government plans to invest over 710 million US dollars in civil aviation by 2045, including the modernization of airports, air navigation and safety systems, forecasting almost 2.8 million passengers a year in Maputo.
Of the total planned investment, 440 million dollars will be allocated to the modernization of airport infrastructure, representing almost two-thirds of the total amount.
Am/
