Mozambique’s sugar exports soared to $36 million in 2024, marking a robust 50% increase from the previous year, as the industry demonstrated a significant recovery from the debilitating effects of recent cyclones. This surge, detailed in official data obtained by Lusa, underscores the agricultural sector’s resilience in one of the world’s most climate change-affected nations.
According to the central bank’s latest balance of payments report, Mozambican sugar exports had reached $24 million in 2023 before last year’s substantial jump. The report attributes this “behaviour” directly to “the recovery of production after the adverse climatic effects that occurred in 2023.”
Mozambique is acutely vulnerable to climate change, experiencing cyclical floods and tropical cyclones during its rainy season, which typically spans from October to April. The 2018/2019 rainy season was particularly devastating, claiming 714 lives, including 648 victims of Cyclones Idai and Kenneth – two of the most powerful storms to ever strike the country.
The central province of Sofala has consistently been among the regions hardest hit by these climatic events. Prior reports by Lusa highlighted the severe impact on sugar production at the Mafambisse Sugar Mill in Sofala, one of Mozambique’s key sugar producers, citing the combined effects of adverse weather and climate change.
Further exacerbating the decline in previous years was the loss of approximately 8,000 hectares of sugarcane in the Nhamatanda region, also due to climate change. The Mafambisse Sugar Mill, located in the administrative post of Mafambisse within Dondo district, possesses an installed capacity to produce 92,000 tonnes of sugar annually.
In a significant show of confidence in the Mozambican sugar industry, South African agribusiness giant Tongaat Hulett recently announced a ZAR500 million (€25 million) capital injection into its Mafambisse and Xinavane sugar mills. Tongaat Hulett holds a majority stake in both Mozambican operations.
