The Mozambican Government has said the issue of Nsanje Inland Port is a closed affair and there will be no further talks between Malawi and Mozambique concerning the port.
The Head of the Department of Bilateral Cooperation at the Ministry of Transport and Communications in Mozambique, Horácio Parquinio, told the media in the country that Mozambique is not in any talks with Malawi regarding the port.
Parquinio was reacting to President Peter Mutharika’s recent claims that the Malawi Government is awaiting Mozambique’s approval to revive the port project.
The K15 billion port was constructed during the reign of Mutharika’s brother, Bingu wa Mutharika, who wanted to connect Malawi to the Indian Ocean via the Zambezi.
However, Mozambique argued that the Zambezi River is not navigable and told the Malawi Government to conduct a comprehensive feasibility study.
Bingu went on to inaugurate the terminal of the ambitious Shire-Zambezi waterway that connects Malawi to the Port of Chinde in Mozambique which is 238 kilometres away.
Parquinio, the Mozambican official, said recent in-depth environmental feasibility studies have been conducted which did not recommend the navigability of the Zambezi River.
He added that Malawi has also been trying to talk with the Mozambicans about the port.
“At a recent meeting on the Nacala Corridor project, they wanted to bring the issue of the port of Nsanje to the table and we, the Mozambican delegation, made it clear that this was no longer a matter for discussion and the issue was taken off the agenda,” he said.
