Mozambique: No kidnappings recorded in six months, a key factor in business confidence and investment

Mozambique has recorded no kidnappings for six months, President Daniel Chapo announced on Monday, saying that improved security has strengthened confidence and attracted domestic and foreign investment. “Mozambique has gone six months without any recorded kidnapping cases confirmed by the authorities,” said the Mozambican Head of State and President of the Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo, the ruling party) during the opening of the 2nd National Council of the Mozambican Youth Organisation (OJM), the Frelimo party youth wing, in Maputo. According to Daniel Chapo, this stability fulfils a promise made at his inauguration in January 2025 and is beginning to restore security to the national and international business community, the main target of kidnappings, which have already affected around 150 businesspeople over 12 years, according to earlier data from business representatives.

“This new reality is beginning to be reflected as a determining factor for confidence and investment from both national and international business communities,” the Head of State and Frelimo President added. On 15 March, Chapo stated that the authorities were working with “calm and serenity” to curb this type of crime in the country. “We had situations of foreigners who wanted to invest in Mozambique but ended up not investing because of this specific crime, and we are working calmly and serenely to combat this problem,” he said in Brussels.

According to the Mozambican President, a Portuguese businessman released the previous week (10 March) was the only remaining hostage in the country, highlighting the reduction in such cases as a key factor in attracting investment. Around 300 people involved in kidnapping cases have been arrested since the first recorded incidents in Mozambique in 2010, said a spokesperson for SERNIC to Lusa on 23 October, explaining that this figure is only an approximate estimate. Over the past 12 years, around 100 investors have also left the country due to fear, according to figures released in 2024 by the Confederation of Economic Associations of Mozambique (CTA).