Business Opportunities in Moz Tete Part 2
As promised, here is the last part of the write up of our tour of Mozambique during the Easter period.
1.What can you buy from Tete and Sell in Zim?
Iam not a fan of vending but here is something interesting—-Charcoal! Its all over Tete…a bag costs $1- $1,50…resaleable value is Harare is $8-$10. With most of the charcoal in supermarkets being imported from SA, this is your chance to open your own Charcoal company. Buy charcoal from Mozambique , repackage it , rebrand it and resell it in Zim.
For this to work you need all relevant import licences, for transport costs do not sweat, you can use the empty trucks coming from Malawi enroute to South Africa. My own estimates is that you should be able to make good profits per bag coz when you repackage it unogona kubudisa ma 3 to 4 packets like those sold in Zim.
2.Schools/Colleges
On our way from Harare to Mtoko unongoti wafamba a few kilos…wowona sign yechikoro. Pano neapo chikoro kwakati…neapozve chikoro. All of this comes to a sudden halt as you enter Moz. Maybe they are designed differently? Maybe they are Pole and Dagga schools? Well i may not have all answers but speaking to folks who work in Moz the conclusion reached is that the standard of education that side is very low.
The end result is that folks working in Moz leave their kids to learn in Zim—an uncomfortable arrangement!! Only one college was recently opened by a Zimbo where kids learn the Zim’s standard of education. I would like to believe that there is more room for entry given that this region has the highest number of expats and yet no international school. Our hosts had also opened a crèche in Tete in addition to a small college they opened last year in Chimoio.
3.Food Courts & Shopping Malls
South Africans are opening their own malls, own banks, own companies…they have invaded this city especially across the Zambezi River. Your chance to visit this place and find out how you can personally benefit. Open food courts, boutiques, internet cafes targeting foreigners and locals. . The rentals seem to be reasonable in Tete….Only saw one very good restaurant where we had dinner, a lot of expats were there.
Our hosts said this area is over subscribed…too many hotels have cropped up in the last 3 or so years. But we struggled to find accommodation in the range of $50-$80 per night!! Time for someone to relook at the sector once more with a view to enter it. You can target the expat community too. Plenty of open spaces along the Mighty Zambezi River banks—good investment opportunity.
5.Farming
This is the area where white Zimbo farmers settled after farm evictions a decade ago. A fellow black Zimbo is already doing a piggery project 50 kilos along the Tete-Zambezi Road.
6.Truck I
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The Road from Tete to Changara does not have a good truck inn..a good place where truck drivers can all stop at one place and rest. Iam envisioning a one place which can also combine with food courts, Mvuma/Zindoga comes to mind.
7.Business Consultancy
The biggest gap in Mozambique is LANGUAGE BARRIER which has created problems in terms of accessing information. All investment opportunities are being taken by ‘foreigners’ because locals ( i mean Zimbos lol) do lack information. Can you imagine i never saw a Zimbo registered vehicle in Mozambique? At the border i only saw 2 vehicles headed for Moz and on way back just 1 Toyota Avensis heading to Moz?
So we agreed with our host that they should set up a website which will become the resource centre of all business information concerning Moz. Jobs, investment opportunities, networking events, new developments etc
We have in mind a place like this forum where information can be easily accessible in the language of your choice- Ndebele, Shona, English and Portuguese.
We have in mind a good platform where you can get information such as:
a. Accommodation
b. Work permits
c. Employment
d. Entertainment
e. Contracts in Moz
f. Business Partnerships
g. Economic Opportunities Tracker
h. Portuguese Learning Centre
i. Importers and Exporters
j. Tourism Opportunities
A first time visitor to Mozambique should get information easily of how long it will take to travel- the distance, necessary documentation, where to live, how to get permits, who to contact etc.
Employers in Mozambique like Zimbabwean workers because we are hardworking and honest. They need a place where they can easily contact and recruit potential employees without much hassle. ONE PLACE FOR MOZ OPPORTUTINIES .
*Post originally appeared on the Facebook Page: Zimbabwe Business Ideas and Network in March 2016.
