Pemba is a

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

city and district in

Mozambique Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Afr ...

. It is the capital and largest city of the Cabo Delgado province and lies on a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

in Pemba Bay, the third largest in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. It is located northeast of

Maputo Maputo () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088,449 (as of 2017) distributed ov ...

, Mozambique's capital. Pemba is known as a prime destination for

water sport Water sports or aquatic sports are sport, sports activities conducted on waterbodies and can be categorized according to the degree of immersion by the participants. On the water * Boat racing, the use of powerboats to participate in races * ...

and diving enthusiasts due to the bay and coral reef that surrounds the city.

Whales Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...

, sunfish, sea turtles, and other various oceanic wildlife are known to frequent Pemba's coast.

History

There is no record of the town's existence or settlement before the 20th century, mainly serving as fishing ground for visiting Malagasy and Swahili fishermen. The first attempt at settlement was made by the Portuguese with a temporary fort that was dismantled after a few years in the late 1800s. The town was founded by the land-controlling and recently formed Niassa Company in 1898 as a small trading port. It was shortly renamed as Porto Amélia, after the last Queen of Portugal, Amélie of Orléans. After the end of the Niassa Company in 1929, Pemba was transferred to direct Portuguese control and became the capital of the newly created district of Cabo Delgado. It took the place of the nearby village of Ibo, in part due to Pemba's access to large ships. It was renamed Pemba at the end of Portuguese rule, in 1975. The city's inhabitants are primarily Swahili, Makondes, Macuas and Mwanis. Local languages that are spoken are Kimwani and Makhuwa, although Portuguese is widespread. Pemba is taking refugees in the aftermath of the Battle of Palma, but has not yet been directly involved in the ongoing Insurgency in Cabo Delgado.

International relations

Pemba is twinned with: *

Aveiro, Portugal Aveiro () is a city and a List of municipalities of Portugal, municipality in Portugal. In 2021, the population was 80,880, in an area of : it is the second most populous city in the Centro Region, Portugal, Centro Region of Portugal (after Coimbr ...

* Reggio Emilia, Italy

Demographics

Municipality

The municipality of Pemba covers 100 km² and recorded 201,846 people in the 2017 census. The actual settlement, however, is mostly just the tip that faces the bay, with most of the land undeveloped.

Climate

Pemba has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry "winter") and ''As'' (for a dry "summer"). The driest month has less than ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Aw''). Temperatures fluctuate little throughout the year due to the city's tropical location and closeness to the equator. It has only two seasons. The wet season is from December to April and brings heavy but reliable rainfall, the wettest month typically being March with an average rainfall of . Conversely, the dry season stretches from May to November and brings marginally cooler temperatures, sunny skies, and very little rain, the driest month typically being September with an average rainfall of . Humidity is very high during the wet season, averaging 80-90%, but is much lower in the dry season. The warmest months are January and February and the coolest is July.

Infrastructure

Pemba is connected to the rest of Mozambique through the N1 Highway, which leads directly to Montepuez to its west. It is also directly connected to Mecúfi via highway connection. A port is located in Pemba and serves as the main logistics hub for the Cabo Delgado province. Pemba Airport provides domestic and international flights to

Johannesburg, South Africa Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

and Nairobi, Kenya.

References

{{Authority control Populated places in Cabo Delgado Province Provincial capitals in Mozambique Populated places established in 1904