Niassa is a

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

Mozambique Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...

. It has an area of 129,056 km² and a population of 1,810,794 (2017). It is the most sparsely populated province in the country.

Lichinga Lichinga is the capital city of Niassa Province of Mozambique. It lies on the Lichinga Plateau at an altitude of , east of Lake Niassa (Lake Malawi). The town was founded as Vila Cabral as a farming and military settlement. It is served by Lich ...

is the capital of the province. There are a minimum estimated 450,000

Yao people The Yao people (its majority branch is also known as Mien; ; vi, người Dao) is a government classification for various minorities in China and Vietnam. They are one of the 55 officially recognised ethnic minorities in China and reside in t ...

living in Mozambique. They largely occupy the eastern and northern part of the Niassa province and form about 40% of the population of Lichinga, the capital of this province. The

Ruvuma River Ruvuma River, formerly also known as the Rovuma River, is a river in the African Great Lakes region. During the greater part of its course, it forms the border between Tanzania and Mozambique (in Mozambique known as ''Rio Rovuma''). The river is ...

forms much of the northern boundary of the province with

Ruvuma Region Ruvuma Region (''Mkoa wa Ruvuma'' in Swahili) is one of Tanzania's 31 administrative regions. The regional capital is the municipality of Songea. According to the 2012 national census, the region had a population of 1,376,891, which was lower th ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

while

Lake Niassa Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. It is the fifth largest fre ...

forms the western border of the province, separating it from

Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northe ...

. 75% of the province remains untouched by development, and remains free of

landmine A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...

s. The province shares the Niassa National Reserve with neighboring

Cabo Delgado Province Cabo Delgado is the northernmost province of Mozambique. It has an area of and a population of 2,320,261 (2017). As well as bordering Mtwara Region in the neighboring country of Tanzania, it borders the provinces of Nampula and Niassa. The r ...

Districts

Niassa Province is divided into the 15 districts of: *

Cuamba District Cuamba District is a district of Niassa Province in north-western Mozambique. The principal town is Cuamba. Further readingDistrict profile(PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in ...

Lago District Lago District is a district of Niassa Province in north-western Mozambique. The principal town is Metangula. Lago District is bordered to the west by Lake Nyasa, on the south by Lichinga, on the east by Sanga District. Lago shares its northern bo ...

Lichinga District Lichinga District is a district of Niassa Province in north-western Mozambique. The principal town is Lichinga. See also * Estamos Further readingDistrict profile(PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format ...

* Majune District * Mandimba District * Marrupa District *

Maúa District Maúa District is a district of Niassa Province in north-western Mozambique. The principal town is Maúa. * Area: 7,976 km2. * Population (est. 2005): 52,852 Further readingDistrict profile(PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardi ...

* Mavago District * Mecanhelas District * Mecula District * Metarica District * Muembe District * N'gauma District * Nipepe District *

Sanga District Sanga District is a district of Niassa Province in north-western Mozambique. The principal town is Sanga. Further readingDistrict profile(PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 19 ...

and the municipalities of: *

Cuamba Cuamba is a city and district of Niassa Province in Mozambique, lying north west of Mount Namuli. Before independence the town was known as ''Nova Freixo'' (New Ash). It lies on the EN8 road, which connects it to the city of Nampula in the east ...

Metangula Metangula is a small town on the shores of Lake Niassa, 110 kilometers from the provincial capital of Lichinga in Niassa Province Niassa is a province of Mozambique. It has an area of 129,056 km2 and a population of 1,810,794 (2017). It is th ...

Demographics

Religion

Education

In 1998, a provincial college was built in Lichinga to train teachers. Partially financed by the Irish Embassy in Maputo, it graduates 60 teachers a year. Apart from training teachers for local schools, the college offers primary school education to the local Lichinga community and works towards reducing the impact of HIV/AIDS in Niassa province.

References

External links

Niassa Province landmine assessment

External links

*
Province of Niassa official site
*
including information about districts
{{Authority control Provinces of Mozambique