Mozambique
The Country of the Week
Quick Facts
- Capital
- Maputo
- Population
- 34,206,144 (2025 est.)
- Area
- 799,380 sq km
- Government
- presidential republic
- Languages
- Makhuwa 26.1%, Portuguese (official) 16.6%, Tsonga 8.6%, Nyanja 8.1, Sena 7.1%, Lomwe 7.1%, Chuwabo 4.7%, Ndau 3.8%, Tswa 3.8%, other Mozambican languages 11.8%, other 0.5%, unspecified 1.8% (2017 est.)
- Religions
- Catholic 27.3%, Islam 19.1%, Pentecostal 16.7%, Saio/Zione 16.3%, no religion 13.5%, other 4.3%, Anglican 1.7%, unknown 1.2% (2017 est.)
- Ethnic Groups
- African 99% (Makhuwa, Tsonga, Lomwe, Sena, and others), Mestizo 0.8%, other (includes European, Indian, Pakistani, Chinese) 0.2% (2017 est.)
- Currency
- meticais (MZM)
- Life Expectancy
- 58.3 years (2024 est.)
- Internet Domain
- .mz
- Climate
- tropical to subtropical
- Terrain
- mostly coastal lowlands, uplands in center, high plateaus in northwest, mountains in west
- Natural Resources
- coal, titanium, natural gas, hydropower, tantalum, graphite
- Major Exports
- coal, natural gas, aluminum, gold, precious stones (2023)
Source: CIA World Factbook (public domain)
Overview
In the first half of the second millennium A.D., northern Mozambican port towns were frequented by traders from Somalia, Ethiopia, Egypt, Arabia, Persia, and India.