Mattei Plan for Africa: agreement signed for food and agriculture centre in Mozambique

An agreement was signed in Maputo, Mozambique, today to build and provide equipment for a food and agriculture centre in Manica (the ‘Centro Agroalimentare di Manica’, ‘CAAM)’. 

This initiative, among the strategic projects implementing the Mattei Plan on the African continent, aims to develop and provide equipment for a food and agriculture centre in the western Mozambican province of Manica, which will act as a regional hub for the processing and distribution of agricultural products.
The project, worth EUR 38 million, is being financed by the Directorate General for Development Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and will contribute to the strategy to boost food security, promote sustainable agriculture and support the inclusion of women and young people in the local business fabric, in line with the priorities expressed by the Mozambican authorities. In this context, the initiative will contribute to advancing Italy’s strategy of enhancing sustainable food processing practices in Africa.

The agreement was signed by the Director General for Development Cooperation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Stefano Gatti, and the Director of International Cooperation and Development Finance at Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, Paolo Lombardo, on the one hand, and by the Minister of Economy and Finance of Mozambique, Ernesto Max Elias Tonela, on the other. The signing of the agreement comes after President Nyusi of Mozambique attended the Italia-Africa Summit on 29 January this year and it took place in the margins of the visit to southern Africa (South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia) by Italian Cooperation representatives and representatives from the task force for implementation of the Mattei Plan, following up on the regional visits to East Africa and West Africa of recent months.