Mozambique wants to learn from Viet Nam’s experience in developing the cashew industry, IlidioAfonso Jose Bande, director of the Mozambique National Cashew Institute (INCAJU), said at a recent workshop.

The workshop on bilateral co-operation in the cashew industry was organised on Tuesday by the Vietnamese Embassy in Mozambique, INCAJU, Mozambique’s Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and the Cashew Industry Association (AICAJU).

It also drew representatives from AICAJU member businesses, cashew growing provinces, such as Gaza, Nampula, Zambezia and Cabo Delgado, and Vietnamese entrepreneurs.

INCAJU’s director said cashew plays an important role in Mozambique’s agricultural development and food security strategy. He expressed admiration at the considerable development of Viet Nam’s cashew industry.

Mozambique wants Viet Nam to transfer technology and help train personnel in the field, he said, calling on Vietnamese businesses to grow and invest in cashew processing lines to help his country boost exports.

Briefing participants about Viet Nam’s cashew industry, Vietnamese Ambassador to Mozambique Nguyen Van Trung emphasised that it was only after more than 15 years did Viet Nam become the No 1 cashew nut exporter in the world, with in-depth experience and advanced techniques in planting, harvesting and processing cashew.

More and more Vietnamese enterprises are interested in the cashew industry in Mozambique and seek partnership and investment opportunities there, he noted.

He asked Vietnamese firms to point out obstacles to their business in the African nation and asked local authorised agencies to tackle the problems and facilitate operations, thereby contributing to the local cashew industry’s expansion.

During the time of the Portuguese colonialism, Mozambique was the largest cashew grower and exporter in Africa, with output of over 200,000 tonnes per year between 1973 and 1975.

Its government has approved a master plan for the cashew industry’s development until 2020, targeted at turning cashew into one of the country’s key exports in the near future.

However, the country is facing certain difficulties due to a lack of modern planting and processing technologies and cashew products’ low quality. Its annual cashew output, currently, is just some 100,000 tonnes, with productivity of under one tonne per hectare. Less than 50 per cent of the output is shipped abroad.

During the workshop, Vietnamese and Mozambique cashew companies discussed the local legal framework for raw cashew shipment, co-operation in cashew planting and investment in processing.

Participants also visited some cashew factories and had a working session with Mozambique’s Ministry of Industry and Trade to solve issues facing Vietnamese firms in exporting raw cashew to Viet Nam. — VNS