Mozambique’s annual private sector conference highlights economic growth, access to finance, gender equality, climate change and sustainability. The Green Cities and Infrastructure Programme (GCIP) participated in this year’s event as a keynote speaker – alongside the Minister of the Public Works, Housing and Hydric Resources – in a session which underlined the importance of implementing structured approaches to green infrastructure.
The CASP 24 Conference, held in Maputo on 16 and 17 May, convened around 4,300 participants in person and a further 33,000 online. This year’s event was the first to feature a real estate exhibition, in recognition of the growing importance of this sector on Mozambique’s economy.
The conference featured three key sessions on sustainability: the role of carbon markets; sustainable real estate and green infrastructure; and alternatives to promoting private investment in Mozambique.
During the joint session with GCIP on “Sustainability Trends, Innovations and Challenges for the Real Estate Sector and Resilient Infrastructure”, the Minister of Public Works, Mr. Carlos Mesquita, began by acknowledging that “climate change continues to be one of the major challenges for economic recovery and for sustainable development after COVID 19”, reiterating the importance of incorporating climate risks into public policy.
The Minister highlighted the crucial role of climate-resilient infrastructure in achieving Sustainable Development Goals 1, 11 and 13, and the need to develop urban development approaches that can contribute toward the climate adaptation so needed in Mozambique. He presented the key Government work and goals regarding the management of growing migration to Urban Centres; in increasing capacity for water resource management and drainage; and investing in the construction of climate-resilient roads. The Minister finalised his presentation by recognising the role of the private sector in the promotion of sustainable cities, encouraging promotors to focus their investment in the areas that can contribute the most towards sustainable development.
On behalf of GCIP, climate finance expert Sofia Santos then discussed the importance of well-defined, climate-resilient techniques that can be implemented in the real estate and infrastructure sectors, and how these can decrease financial risks and attract capital.
She explored the linkages between climate change, risks and potential economic losses for countries, explaining to the private sector how additional investment in climate resilience today can contribute to lower financial losses due to climate-related events in future. Ms Santos then presented examples of climate-resilient construction, reinforcing the need to incorporate environmental, social and institutional issues in the value chain of sustainable infrastructures, to promote job creation, technology and innovation development, new skills and potential international investment.
In Mozambique, GCIP is being co-developed between the UK FCDO, the Government of Mozambique, the private sector and local experts. Through its Deep Offer programme, GCIP aims to tackle many of the issues raised by the Minister of Public Works, and to enhance sustainable finance approaches to attract international investment on resilient infrastructures for Mozambique.
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The UK’s Green Cities and Infrastructure Programme will accelerate the delivery of sustainable green cities and climate-resilient infrastructure – tackling climate change and extreme poverty.
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- * In the photo: Ricardo Cunhaque, President of the Business Council of Sofala; Nelson Belarmino, Development Studies Specialist; Angelo Macassa, Vice-President of the Women's Business and Entrepreneurship Department; Sofia Santos, Climate Finance Expert, GCIP; Eng. Carlos Mesquita, Minister of Public Works, Housing and Water Resources; Weiyi Wang, Operations Officer at IFC; Bento Machaila, President of the Mozambican Federation of Contractors and Vice-President of the Civil Construction and Real Estate Department of the CTA; Félix Machado, President of the Tax, Customs and International Trade Policy Department; Amade Camal, President of the Board at COMETAL; Munir Sacoor, Vice President of Natural Resources and Energy; President of CEP Zambézia; Aldemiro Eduardo, Member of the Civil Construction and Real Estate Department.
