Agriculture of Mozambique
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Mozambique has a variety of regional cropping patterns; agro-climatic zones range from arid and semi-arid (mostly in the south and south-west) to the sub-humid zones (mostly in the centre and the north) to the humid
highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
s (mostly the central provinces). The most fertile areas are in the northern and central provinces, which have high agro-ecological potential and generally produce agricultural surpluses. Southern provinces have poorer soils and scarce rainfall, and are subject to recurrent droughts and floods.Mozambique Agricultural Development Strategy Stimulating Smallholder Agricultural Growth, The World Bank, February 23, 2006


Production

Mozambique produced, in 2018: * 8.5 million tons of cassava (9th largest producer in the world); * 3 million tons of
sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with ...
; * 1.6 million tons of maize; * 625 thousand tons of
sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...
; * 578 thousand tons of
banana A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...
; * 343 thousand tons of tomatoes; * 273 thousand tons of potato; * 227 thousand tons of
coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...
; * 138 thousand tons of onion; * 134 thousand tons of rice; * 108 thousand tons of cashew nuts (11th largest producer in the world); * 107 thousand tons of peanut; * 93 thousand tons of tobacco; * 90 thousand tons of
sorghum ''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species is grown for grain, while many othe ...
; * 89 thousand tons of cowpea; * 85 thousand tons of castor bean; * 66 thousand tons of pineapple; * 65 thousand tons of sesame seed; * 50 thousand tons of beans; * 48 thousand tons of cotton; In addition to smaller productions of other agricultural products.


Farming Industry

With the large majority of agricultural production being rain-fed, weather variability is a major factor in determining crops performance. The main growing season starts with the first rains in September in the south and December in the north. There is also a minor growing season, based on residual soil moisture, from March to July, accounting for approximately 10 percent of total output. Agriculture is for the most part based on small, hand-cultivated units often farmed by women-headed households. About 97 percent of production comes from some 3.2 million subsistence farms averaging 1.2 hectares. The smallholder sector in Mozambique is characterized by holdings of multiple small plots, multiple crops, rain-fed water, traditional varieties, low intensity fertilizer and
pesticide Pesticides are substances that are meant to control pests. This includes herbicide, insecticide, nematicide, molluscicide, piscicide, avicide, rodenticide, bactericide, insect repellent, animal repellent, microbicide, fungicide, and lampri ...
use and little or no mechanization, and low
productivity Productivity is the efficiency of production of goods or services expressed by some measure. Measurements of productivity are often expressed as a ratio of an aggregate output to a single input or an aggregate input used in a production proces ...
. Most households diversify to cope with low productivity and income. The majority practice extensive shifting cultivation, only about one-third sell any crop output, and almost two-thirds live in households that lack food security. Mozambique's surface or total area is 784.955kmq, i.e.: 78.5 million hectares. There are about 36 million hectares of arable land, suitable for agriculture. However, only ten percent of the arable land, 3.9 million hectares, is estimated to be cultivated. The remainder of the total area is under pastures (44 million ha) and forest /woodlands (30.7 million ha) About 118,000 hectares are equipped for irrigation, covering 3% of the potential land.FAO Statistic Yearbook 2010 – Resources, retrieved 9 May 2011 ;Crops Food crop production is the most important agriculture sub-sector accounting for around 80 percent of the cultivated area (2009). Maize and cassava are the major staples; other
food crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydroponics ...
s include
sorghum ''Sorghum'' () is a genus of about 25 species of flowering plants in the grass family (Poaceae). Some of these species are grown as cereals for human consumption and some in pastures for animals. One species is grown for grain, while many othe ...
,
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
, rice,
bean A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...
s,
groundnut Groundnut may refer to: * Seeds that ripen underground, of the following plants, all in the Faboideae subfamily of the legumes: ** '' Best Basketball Player'', Obinna Udunni ** '' Arachis villosulicarpa'', a perennial peanut species ** ''Vigna sub ...
,
sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the Convolvulus, bindweed or morning glory family (biology), family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a r ...
es and a wide variety of vegetables. Maize is grown in all regions of the country by about 79 percent of rural households and occupies about 35 percent of total planted area. Cassava is grown mainly in the north and south-east, where it is the main staple. This crop is an important component of the smallholder’s risk reduction strategy because it is drought tolerant and resistant to disease. Groundnut is cultivated on sandy soils in most locations and makes an important contribution to household diet and income. The main
cash crop A cash crop or profit crop is an Agriculture, agricultural crop which is grown to sell for profit. It is typically purchased by parties separate from a farm. The term is used to differentiate marketed crops from staple crop (or "subsistence crop") ...
s are tobacco, cotton,
sesame Sesame ( or ; ''Sesamum indicum'') is a flowering plant in the genus ''Sesamum'', also called benne. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world and is cu ...
,
sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...
and tea.
Tree crops In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are u ...
, especially
coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...
and
cashew The cashew tree (''Anacardium occidentale'') is a tropical evergreen tree native to South America in the genus ''Anacardium'' that produces the cashew seed and the cashew apple accessory fruit. The tree can grow as tall as , but the dwarf cult ...
, grown by small farmers, are an important source of foreign exchange earnings, and contribute to household food security. ;Technology and Techniques The use of modern technologies and irrigation facilities is limited to a small number of commercial farms growing cash crops and vegetables and to out-growers of tobacco and cotton-producing crops on contract. Average crop yields are about half of the regional standard estimates indicating huge scope for improvement. Animal husbandry is an underdeveloped sector. Cattle, goats, sheep and pigs are reared in extensive grass-based ( ruminants) or back-yard scavenger systems. There is, also a small fast-growing modern poultry industry. In 2009, livestock accounted for 1.2 million of head of cattle, 4.5 million sheep and goats, 1.3 million pigs, and 18 million poultry. Beef production was estimated at 22,000 tons; pig meat, 91,000 tons; poultry meat, 22,000 tons; cows' milk, 75,000 tons; and hen
egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...
s, 14 million. The high prevalence of disease is the main constraints undermining an increase in livestock numbers. For example, Newcastle disease is a major ubiquitous problem for poultry, in the northern provinces tsetse flies affect cattle, and African swine fever affects pigs. The southern region is the heart of livestock activities because animals there are less prone to diseases.


Beyond Farming

In the fisheries sub-sector, some 1,500 species are believed to live in the Mozambican seawaters, of which 400 are of commercial importance. In 2008, captures of
fishery Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...
and
aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. lot ...
production totalled 120,000 tons. The potential catch is estimated at 500,000 tons of fish. South African trawlers are allowed to fish in Mozambican waters in return for providing a portion of their catch to Mozambique. The European Community, Italy, and Japan have each entered into agreements designed to help develop the fishing industry.


Climate and Geography

Thick forest covers the wet regions, where there are fertile soils, but the drier interior, which has sandy or rocky soils, supports only a thin
savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...
vegetation. Extensive stands of hardwood, such as ebony, flourish throughout the country. Wood production is from natural forests and is almost entirely consumed by the local rural populations for fuel and construction. Forests constitute an estimated 30.7 million hectares. In 2009, the timber cut was approximately 36 million cu m.World Bank – Mozambique at a glance, 2/25/2011


References


Bibliography

* Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Statistic Yearbook 2010. Text Online: http://www.fao.org/economic/ess/ess-publications/ess-yearbook/en/ * Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Country Profiles – Mozambique. Text Online: http://www.fao.org/countryprofiles/index.asp?lang=en&ISO3=MOZ * Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Emergency Mozambique Fact Sheet. Text Online: http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/tc/tce/pdf/Mozambique_factsheet.pdf * Food and Agriculture Organization/World Food Program (FAO/WFP). Special Report and Food Security Assessment Mission to Mozambique, 12 August 2010. Text Online: http://www.fao.org/docrep/012/ak350e/ak350e00.htm#3 * United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). International Human Development Indicators. Text Online: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/ * The World Bank. Mozambique at a glance, 2/25/2011. Text Online: https://web.archive.org/web/20110721020914/http://devdata.worldbank.org/AAG/moz_aag.pdf * The World Bank. Mozambique Agricultural Development Strategy Stimulating Smallholder Agricultural Growth, February 23, 2006. Text Online: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/MOZAMBIQUEEXTN/Resources/Moz_AG_Strategy.pdf * African Development Fund (ADF). Mozambique 2006-09 Country Strategy Strategy Paper, April 2006. Text Online: http://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Project-and-Operations/ADB-BD-WP-2006-47-EN-MOZAMBIQUE-CSP-2006-2009-REVISED-FINAL.PDF * Encyclopedia of the Nations, Mozambique. Text Online: http://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Africa/Mozambique-FORESTRY.html * Waterhouse, Rachel. Vulnerability in Mozambique: Patterns, trends and responses, Paper presented to the IESE Conference Poverty Dynamics and Patterns of Accumulation in Mozambique, Maputo, 22–23 April 2009. Text Online: http://www.iese.ac.mz/lib/publication/II_conf/GrupoIV/Vulnerability_WATERHOUSE.pdf


See also

*
Food Security in Mozambique It is estimated that 64 percent of the Mozambique population is food insecure. The prevalence is higher in the southern region (75 percent).Mozambique net importer of food. Total annual cereal import requirements average 0.89 million tons (0.14 mi ...
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