Mozambique

Mozambique is a country in southeastern Africa on the Indian Ocean, facing Madagascar across the Mozambique Channel. It borders Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Eswatini and South Africa, and covers 801,537 km2 (309,475 sq mi).

Maputo is the capital and largest city. Portuguese is the only official language, and Makhuwa, Tsonga, Sena, Chichewa and Swahili are among the main local languages. Bantu-speaking farmers moved into the region from the 4th century BC. Between the 7th and 11th centuries Swahili port towns grew on the coast, trading gold and ivory brought from inland states such as Great Zimbabwe and the Mutapa Empire. Vasco da Gama called at the Island of Mozambique in 1498, and the country is named after the island, once ruled by the Arab trader Musa ibn Bique. Portuguese settlement began in 1505, and the island town stayed the colonial capital until 1898. FRELIMO began its campaign for independence in 1964, and Mozambique became independent in 1975.

Under the constitution the president, elected directly for five years, is head of state and head of government and appoints the prime minister, while the Assembly of the Republic has 250 members. The first multiparty elections took place in 1994. Fishing, mostly of shellfish, and farming carry the economy, along with growing food and drink, chemical, aluminum and oil industries. In 2010–2011 Anadarko and Eni found the Mamba South gas field in the Rovuma basin off Cabo Delgado. The Zambezi splits the country in two, and Lake Niassa and the Cahora Bassa reservoir lie in the north.

The Makonde are known for ebony carvings and masks worn in dances, and after 1975 the painter Malangatana Ngwenya and the sculptor Alberto Chissano shaped modern art. The Chopi are famed for the marimba, a kind of xylophone, and Makua men dance on stilts in colorful masks. Nearly five centuries of Portuguese presence show in pãozinho buns and chicken in piri piri sauce, and cassava and cashew nuts are common foods. Divers come to Inhambane Province for whale sharks and manta rays, Gorongosa is among its national parks, and quiet beaches line the Quirimbas Islands and the Bazaruto archipelago.