Media

Media language Portuguese, English.

Information channels
Television is popular medium in Mozambique and there are around 20 stations. State-run TVM is the national network, and STV is a popular private channel. Portuguese RTP Africa and Brazilian-owned TV Miramar are widely-watched. State-run Antena Nacional radio is a key news medium. Private FM stations operate in most towns. Many community broadcasters are funded by the government and Unesco. Many media outlets are “directly or indirectly controlled by the authorities or members of the ruling party”, says watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF). The media suffer a lack of resources and are susceptible to self-censorship, says Reporters Without Borders. Journalists are subject to intimidation and lawsuits by officials. Access to the north of the country, where Islamist militants are active, is “virtually impossible” for reporters, RSF says.

The press

Noticias – main daily, has government shareholding
O Pais – private, daily
Carta de Mocambique – news website
Club of Mozambique– news website

Television

Televisao de Mozambique (TVM) – state-run
Soico TV (STV) – private
TV Miramar – private

Radio

Radio Mozambique – state-run, operates Antena Nacional, provincial/local channels, youth-oriented Cidade FM
Radio Miramar – private
Radio Maria Mozambique – Roman Catholic

News agency

Agencia Informacao Mocambique (AIM) – English-language pages

Internet Data

Internet users
23.2% penetration, 7.96 million

Share of web traffic by device
70.82% mobile phones, 27.81% computers (laptops and desktops), 1.37% tablet devices.

Median speed of mobile Internet connection
19.78 Mbps

Median speed of fixed Internet connection
13.05 Mbps

Mobile connection as a percentage of total population
55%

Percentage of mobile connections that are broadband (3G-5G)
81.9%

Most popular web search engines
Google (96.45%), Bing (3.18%), Yahoo! (0.15%), Petal Search (0.11%), Ecosia (0.03%), other (0.09%).

Most used social media
Facebook (57.68%), Pinterest (18.05%), YouTube (12.11%), Instagram (6.19%), Twitter (4.28%), LinkedIn (1.01%), Reddit (0.42%), other (0.27%).

Social statistics

Life expectancy
60 yrs (2022)

Corruption perceptions Index
Mozambique scored 26 out of 100, ranked 142nd out of 180 countries worldwide.

Current health expenditure
9.05% of GDP

CO2 emissions
0.2 metric tons per capita

Current education expenditure
80.7% of total expenditure in public institutions.

World Happiness Index
Mozambique ranked 101st out of 146 countries, with a score of 5.048.

Religion & Ethnicity
Mozambique is a large and diverse country with people from many different cultural, religious, economic and geographical backgrounds. In addition to the many indigenous groups, Mozambique has received waves of colonialists, immigrants and migrant workers over the years which all add to the country’s great diversity. Newcomers might be surprised to find that the shop on the corner is owned by a Mozambican of Indian descent or that their dentist in the clinic is a Mozambican with a mixed Portuguese and Chinese heritage. There are dozens of ethnic groups represented in Mozambique along with many different languages. Almost half of the population holds traditional African beliefs. The largest established religion in Mozambique is Roman Catholic, followed by Islam. In the face of this diversity, Mozambique has worked hard to ensure the equality and maintain harmony among all Mozambicans. There is also a lot of work being done to equalize the relationships between men and women. Still, there are certain attitudes that a newcomer should be aware of.

Gender
The relationship between men and women is a very current topic in Mozambique and there have been great strides in working towards equality. For example, there has been a campaign to introduce improved rights for women in Mozambique’s Family Law, which has generally favoured men in areas of marriage, divorce, child custody, etc. Mozambican women are primarily responsible for the maintenance of the home and the family in addition to their other work in creating income (for rural women this would generally be family farm work and for urban women this would be wage labour). In many rural areas, the majority of men are migrant workers and women are heavily burdened. Women are still more involved in the informal sector where wages are low and unstable.

Class
Class is a significant way in which people distinguish themselves one from the other. Generally, the wealthiest people live in cities and the poorest live in villages. The upper classes generally isolate themselves from the lower classes. Because of a two-tiered system in education and health, wealthier people have access to high-quality education and health in private schools and clinics.

Another important distinction in Mozambique is the north/south distinction. Much of the population, wealth and, significantly, government institutions are located in the south of the country, near Maputo. Both before Independence and after, the south has been more developed and has much better infrastructure than the north. This, combined with proximity to South Africa in the southern areas, means that the south has been much more prosperous than the north and also has a much stronger voice in decisions about national and regional development. Not surprisingly, there is some tension between the north and the south over these issues.